Davids Journey

In 2003 David was diagnosed with glioblastoma. Up until that day he was rarely even sick with a cold! When he began complaining of headaches and that his hand was sometimes numb, I took him right away to our pediatrician. He decided it would be best to give him a CAT scan since Dave was also having nausea and vomiting. The CAT scan revealed a tumor in the right temporal lobe. We went to the hospital and were told he would not live more than a year. Glioblastoma has no cure they said. It's all so surreal. One day your world is 'normal'....the next day it's upside down....coupled with being a single mom, three kids and no child support...I had to leave work...stress is high now, but nothing compares to what my child is going through.
Dave began his radiation treatments- 33..then temador. The MRI's were every 6 weeks...Almost a year to the day his tumor returned. This time we went to Childrens Hospital in Miami, and he had another resection with gliadel wafers implanted..a port implanted and a protocol from the doctors at Duke Tumor Center. Dave did this second chemo treatment from August 2004- Sept. 2006...he did stay on the tamoxifen until January 2007.....Dave decided he had had enough of chemo and the other drugs in his protocol. He just wanted to be 'normal'. His scans have been clear, he now gets them every 3 months. He just had one 11/9/07, and it was clear. There are residual effects for all this treatment...he has low thyroid activity and was placed on synthroid, which immediately increased his energy. The tamoxifen is great for inhibiting cell growth (cancer), but it also effects regular puberty growth..we are awaiting results on a stimulation test that determines his hormone levels, and he may be a candidate for hormone injections. Meanwhile..he lives his life his way, he's very old for his age in some ways...and just a kid in other ways. He performs stand-up comedy and was an opener at the Hard Rock Cafe in Hollywood, Florida for Todd Glass this past weekend. He wants to do comedy, broadcasting, journalism....he totally understands the ramifications of glioblastoma...he has had many friends pass away over the course of his journey and recognizes that life is fleeting-make the most of it while you are here. The courage and determination, the tenacity I have seen in many of these children is beyond heroic...I have learned so much about true strength through these children. Please feel free to visit Dave's site: www.caringbridge.org/fl/david
If anyone ever needs to talk my email and home # are on his site.
Sincerely,
Kathy-mom to David