Hockey Kids Helping Kids Like Jayce

Jayce is no stranger to the Alberta Children’s Hospital. He’s known the hospital since he was a baby, seeing several clinics including GI, Endocrine and Metabolic, and having more diagnostic scans than he can count, including endoscopies and MRIs.

Jayce’s medical journey began at about four months old when his mom Chelsea noticed he wasn’t eating well or growing much. A visit with her parents in Saskatchewan turned into a trip to the local hospital after Jayce started choking, struggling to breathe. Jayce had a diaphragmatic hernia — a hole in his diaphragm which caused his stomach to move into his chest cavity — and he needed an operation right away to repair it. Back in Calgary a month later, Chelsea took him to the Alberta Children’s Hospital when he was having the same symptoms as before. It was here doctors discovered his diaphragmatic hernia needed another repair.

In Kindergarten, Jayce was diagnosed with a condition called Dumping Syndrome. Specialists found he was missing a valve that connects the stomach to the small intestine, causing food to move too quickly and nutrients unable to be absorbed. The condition has come with various challenges including hypoglycemia – or lower than average blood sugar levels – and delays in growth and development.

Thankfully, he and his family found themselves in great hands with specialists in the Metabolic and Genetics clinics. Genetic testing revealed Jayce had a genetic variant that was potentially affecting his growth. He was started on a growth hormone, and was also diagnosed with a heart murmur – his aorta was found to be too big for his body.

As renowned and well-loved GI specialist Dr. Brent Scott once said, “Jayce is anatomically abnormal, but delightful.”

At the start of his growth hormone treatment, Jayce was tiny. Now he’s a strapping young guy who is happy to be back on the ice for his fifth season with his Springbank Rockies hockey team. And no longer is he the smallest player!