Toby's summer has been full of sunshine, beach days, hot dog cookouts, puddle jumping, bike rides and ice cream. He's doing really well, finishing up his 10th cycle of ABT-751, with clean MiBG + CT scans and clear bone marrows. We are so very, very lucky.
And yet, shouldn't this be the norm? Every child fighting this horrible disease deserves a summer to be a kid, without constant pain, toxic chemo, life-threatening surgery or worse. Sadly, so many of our kids are not experiencing summer like Toby. Mr. Inquisitive, dear wonderful Liam, recently relapsed and is spending his third summer battling neuroblastoma. He is all of 5 years old. Sweet Evan was receiving ABT like Toby, but a routine scan showed neuroblastoma in the brain. He just finished 17 straight days of radiation and will start intrathecal 8H9 antibody treatment soon. There are too many awful summers out there... almost every child we know is spending their summer fighting for life.
Please think of these kids. And then, go hug your own children. Tell them how amazing they are and be thankful for every day.
