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Matthew turned 6 years old in October, 2017. His mom Christina says, for those who know Matthew, he has always been so full of energy, wise beyond his years, and such a loveable little boy. All it takes is to meet him, one time, and you instantly fall in love with his magnetic personality.

 

Courageous Matthew has never been one to complain about anything. On November 19th, 2017, his parents took him to the urgent care because of a limp, weakness in both legs, and severe pain in his left hip. Upon examining Matthew, they sent them to the emergency room, at Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital, in Orlando.

 

The doctors at Arnold Palmer ordered x-rays and an ultrasound, as well as some lab work. Then they came in and delivered the devastating news, that no parent should ever have to hear…They suspected he had cancer in his abdomen. They ordered a CT scan of his chest/abdomen/pelvis to confirm their diagnosis.

Christina says, “the CT scan results came back, and showed that our 6 year old had a 13cm abdominal mass that was pushing on his right kidney and also pushing on the nerves that allowed Matthew to walk. This was causing the limping and weakness.”

 

They were then admitted to the Oncology floor, with plans for surgery to biopsy the tumor, perform bone marrow biopsies from both hips, and to place a port for chemotherapy. The surgery was completed on November 21, without complications. Then it was a matter of waiting for the biopsy results, in order to determine the type of tumor, and plan the course of treatment.

 

Christina says, “The fear, that we were experiencing, was overwhelming!! It was like we were stuck in a neverending nightmare, praying to wake up, only to discover this was our reality😢. “

 

The results came back, and it was confirmed that Matthew has Stage 4 High-risk Neuroblastoma, and the cancer had spread to his bone marrow. Now that they knew the devastating diagnosis, the doctors were able to come up with treatment plan.

 

“Matthew has a long, challenging, road ahead of him. Neuroblastoma is one of the most challenging pediatric cancers to treat, according to his pediatric oncologist. But, it IS treatable, and we are praying for a cure!! We are going to fight this cancer, with everything that we have, to save our precious boy!!”

 

Matthew has completed his 2nd round of chemotherapy, and is to be readmitted for his 3rd round, on January 4th, 2018.