Tjs Story: Let me start by saying Tj was/is truly a miracle baby. We were told we would never have children and five years of trying and a few fertility treatments later-we recieved the best news of our lives. God blessed us with a beautiful boy. He had a bit of a rough start. He made his entrance into the world five weeks to soon and spent some time in the NICU. He has had some issues since birth- severe anemia, pneumonia, asthma, tounge tied, a fluid filled sack in his skull and some very high random fevers for several months that were unexplained. I thought all of that was so terrible for my baby to go through but the reality is-that was nothing. August 18, 2014- Tj went potty an I noticed his right testicle was large like two/three times the size of the other one. I asked him if it hurt. He said no but I was still concerned so I sent my husband a picture. Which resulted in a visit to the pediatrician that day. The pediatrician said he thought Tj had experienced some trama to the area and sent us to the hospital for a ultrasound. The ultrasound showed what they believed to be swelling and bleeding. The pediatrician decided we needed to see a urologist immediately. He sent us to Johns Hopkins ER. The ER diagnosed him with a hernia after a second ultrasound. I questioned why his testicle felt so large and they said they believed ut was his intestines not his testicle. I followed up with the urologist at JH who also told me it was a hernia and the mass was intestines. They set his hernia surgery for September 11, 2014. I told my husband I didnt believe it was strictly a hernia all along. September 11, 2014- We arrived for hernia surgery early 8am. The surgery was going to take anywhere from a half hour to a few hours. I carries him back and stayed with him until he was asleep. I thought that would be the worst part of my day- I was so wrong. After about 20 minutes the surgeon came out and asked to speak to my husband and myself in private. We were both shocked he came out so soon and I immediately knew something was wrong. He walked us into a small room off the waiting room before He could say a word I asked Is my son okay he said Yes, but we didnt find a hernia we found a mass. He showed us a picture of it and said we want to biopsy it right now I said to the doctor Be honest with me. Do you think my son has cancer? No, it could be but I dont think so that would be extremely rare but we need to know what it is. We gave permission for the biopsy. Another doctor came out to the waiting room and spoke to us. He said there was a 60% chance it was cancer. I cried as we waited because in my heart I already knew. The surgeon came out about an hour later took us back into the same room and said One of the best pathologist in the world looked at your sons biopsy and we believe it is cancer. We need to remove the tumor, testicle & sperm cord. We immediately agreed and off the surgeon went. We walked out of the tiny room into the waiting room full of about 30 people including both set of Tjs grandparents and I broke down. I fell into my Moms chest sobbing like a child My baby has cancer Mom- why is this happening? I keep repeating it. I ended up being physically sick. We all just sat there in the waiting room crying and speechless. The surgeon came back out took us back into the small room and proceeded to tell us it was believed to be PARATESTICULAR RHABDOMYOSARCOM. He said it was so rare even at Johns Hopkins they only see it maybe once a year. He couldnt answer any questions because he said we needed way more testing and the full biopsy back first. We went to see Tj in recovery and I kissed his head and cried. How could he be sick? He didnt look, act or feel sick. It felt like it wasnt possible. The oncologist came in and told me they would be taking over his care. I asked several questions my main question was Did the surgery remove it all? Is he cancer free? Thats when it got even worse. He said With this cancer you have to do Chemotherapy. I broke down again. I knew what that meant for my sweet boy sitting on my lap.... sick days ahead, a bald little boy & more pain I couldnt take away from him. They also told me the chemotherapy had a very high chance of making him sterile. All I could do was cry and hold him. Once we were home he came over grabbed my face and said Mama whats wrong? Its okay Mama. In a way it gave me peace. He didnt have a clue. He doesnt understand. I am thankful for that. Maybe he wont remember this when he gets older. As of now- we have to wait. Next week Tj will go for a CT Scan & PET Scan. They will also test his Bone Marrow and place his line for Chemotherapy. Which will start in about a week. They dont know the type or length of Chemotherapy yet. Please pray for my sweet boy. Pray for the doctors. Pray for us & his baby sister. I know my son is tough & he is a fighter but a child should never have to fight for their life.
Posted on: Sat, 13 Sep 2014 11:36:35 +0000