Theo

In April of 2008 my husband and I were giving our then 4 year old a bath when we noticed a lump in his right testicle. We became very concerned and carried him to the doctor who asked us to return in a week, as it might not be serious and should reduce after a week. We watched for a few days and returned him to the doctor as, in our opinion, it was actually getting bigger. We scheduled an appointment with the urologist but had to rush him to the Emergency Room one night as he could hardly walk because of the pain and discomfort he was feeling as well as a high fever. Several hospital visits and scans later we ended up at Schneider Children’s Hospital where we were told that our youngest child, the life of the family, was suffering from Acute Lymphoblastic Lymphoma (this diagnosis was changed to Burkitt’s Lymphoma after two months of unsuccessful treatment). We were totally unprepared for this devastation in our family. My husband who has never cried in the 16 years I have known him, wept like a baby. Our lives have not been the same since then; it has been a tough journey.