Move Mountains for Kids like Tyson
Give New Hope to Kids at the Alberta Children’s Hospital
You can help our experts develop gentler cures for children with cancer. Give today and your donation will be matched! Together, we can move mountains for kids like Tyson, and move medicine forward for ALL kids.
It had been a special Christmas for Josh and Courtney. It was their first one celebrating as a family of three after welcoming baby Tyson 12 weeks earlier. Festivities were cut short, however, when on Boxing Day, they discovered a strange bump on Tyson’s head. Two days later, he became congested and then, struggled to breathe…
The couple rushed Tyson to their closest hospital, the South Health Campus. There, doctors suspected he had respiratory virus and suggested he be transported straight to the Alberta Children’s Hospital.
While Josh went home to pack an overnight bag, Courtney rode with their baby boy in an ambulance to the hospital. Josh was enroute to meet them when his wife called with words he’ll never forget.
“They think it’s cancer.
Every year, around 80 children and their families at the Alberta Children’s Hospital receive that same heartbreaking news. Community support ensures that when a child is diagnosed with cancer, they have access to the very best treatments possible.
WATCH THE VIDEO
MEET TYSON
Experts at the Alberta Children's Hospital saved Tyson. Together, we can move medicine forward for ALL children.
TYSON'S STORY
Right away, Tyson was admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. What they had originally thought to be chest congestion was his liver and spleen swelling from the cancer, crowding his tiny lungs. For the next 10 days, he relied on ventilator to breathe.
Pediatric oncologists determined Tyson had acute myeloid leukemia, an aggressive cancer of the blood and bone marrow. The bump on his head was a cluster of cancer cells that spread to his central nervous system. While he was intubated, his oncology team began the first round of chemotherapy on Tyson’s little body.
“Days before, we wanted to give him Infant Tylenol for his cold symptoms and then remembered it’s not recommended for babies his age,” says Josh. “Next thing we knew, we were watching our three-month-old baby receive medicine so toxic, his nurse had to gown up in what looked like a hazmat suit to give it to him.”
Tyson’s parents were told that after several rounds of chemotherapy, his best chance for survival would be a bone marrow transplant (BMT) – a brand new immune system infused into his body.
Donations from people like you have made the Alberta Children’s Hospital a centre of excellence in bone marrow transplantation. You can help find new cures for more children facing cancer by making a special gift. And thanks to a generous member of our community, your donation will be matched (up to $100,000) to go even further for kids who rely on the Alberta Children’s Hospital.
Courtney’s plans for swim lessons and trips to the mountains with her baby were put on hold while he went through chemotherapy and his specialists searched for a bone marrow donor. The chemotherapy caused terrible, painful mouth sores, so Tyson had to stop the comfort of nursing and instead receive his mom’s milk through a feeding tube that went directly into his tummy.
During this time, he also needed urgent neurosurgery for a clot discovered in his brain. Courtney, a firefighter, had to put her trust in another team of heroes to save her son’s life, but throughout their journey, she never left her baby’s side.
Then in March, they received the great news a bone marrow donor had been found, and in April, at six months old, Tyson received his life-saving BMT. Today, Tyson is a happy three-year-old who is still closely monitored by his team of oncologists.
“Because of our incredible nurses and doctors, we can watch our little boy grow up,” says Courtney. “They are the heroes, and we are so grateful for them.”
Seeing the mountains every day through her hospital window, Courtney longed for the day Tyson would be well enough that she could take him there and share her happy place with him. Thanks to the specialized care he received from his team of experts, and generous people who support their work, she could. Now, he loves going back.
“It’s where he can throw rocks and smell the wildflowers, because generous people like you helped his specialists move mountains to save him,” says Josh.
While 80% of children will survive a cancer diagnosis with standard therapy, most will suffer serious side effects for the rest of their lives. Tyson is one of them. Along with his oncology team, he is also followed by a neurologist for complications caused by the chemotherapy’s impact on his central nervous system.
With the season of giving upon us, we hope you feel inspired to give and help our researchers find newer, gentler cures without the lasting side effects for more children facing cancer. And in honour of another grateful mom named Elsie whose son also received exceptional care, your donation will be matched by her generous family to have twice the impact.
Together, we can move mountains for kids like Tyson.
Donate today!
Your gift will be matched to give twice the impact, twice the hope to families of children with cancer.
MATCH MY GIFTSign up for our emails!