08/30/2026
As 🎗️September rolls around and memories pop up on our Google Home, this time of year sucks the air right out of me. Somehow, it has been 9 years since our life went from normal to a nightmare.
A literal nightmare.
There is nothing else to call it.
Brain cancer.
Medulloblastoma.
Leptomeningeal metastases.
50% chance of survival.
Hydrocephalus.
Surgery.
Hickman line placement.
Chemo.
Stem cell harvest.
High-dose chemo.
Stem cell transplants
Remission.
Relapse.
Port placement.
Radiation.
Chemo.
Relapse.
More chemo—this time directly into the brain.
Immunotherapy.
Targeted trial drug.
Shunt placement.
Hospice.
Reradiation.
Expanded access trial drug.
“Nothing else we can do.”
Those words still make me angry. And they still don't make sense. And I remember speaking with a St. Jude doctor on the phone and telling him, "HE IS 4 WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE IS NOTHING ELSE YOU CAN DO".
Yet eventually, our family learned what it meant when they said there was nothing else. Reid's sweet 5 year old body couldn't handle anymore. It had nothing to do with how strong he was or not fighting hard enough. There wasn't anything, and there still isn't anything that could cure it. And we know way too many people that are in our same situation. Who have a huge hole in their lives and an empty space in everything that they do.
🎗️Cancer remains the leading cause of death by disease among children in the United States after infancy. Thousands of children and teenagers are diagnosed every year.
🎗️Brain and other nervous system cancers are the second most common childhood cancer and the leading cause of childhood cancer death in the United States.
That's why funding matters. That's why research matters. That's why clinical trials matter. That's why organizations like the Children's Brain Tumor Network and the researchers working every day to understand these tumors matter. Kids deserve better.🎗️💛
Here is what you can do this September. Talk about childhood cancer. Help a family you know. Advocate for childhood cancer research. Donate if you can. Give blood.
And while you're talking about soccer, football, school, work, practices, and all the other things that make life busy and exhausting... Be thankful for the busy life you're complaining about. Because there is a very good chance that your busy life doesn't include any of those words Reid and our family and so many other families we know have to hear.
My heart goes out to all of the families who are fighting, dealing with the terrible side effects, and especially those missing their innocent babies. Who continue to fight with empty arms. ❤️
For you sweet Reid, always. 💛
