Cool update!

https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Ben-Pearson-17-Year-Old-Cancer-Patient-Throws-Out-Ceremonial-First-Pitch-at-Dodger-Game-442827203.html

Remembered the blog when looking for a link to this!

Checking in!

Today I got an incredible e-mail from a gentleman in Alabama whose grandson (also named Ben) was just diagnosed with pre-B ALL.  Ben and I called him and we had a great chat.  Apparently he read this entire blog and found it informative and inspiring, which made us feel terrific!

To anyone who is wondering how Ben is doing, the answer is GREAT!  Although he gets checked every six months, he is basically back to being a normal kid.  No more treatment, and very low risk of recurrence at this point based on how long it has been since Ben went into remission.  There are some long-term effects of having gone through chemo, but they are nothing compared to what they used to be.

Anyway, if you are visiting this blog because you or a loved one is going through treatment, we hope you find it helpful.  Everything is going to be OK, hang in there!

CureSearch Walk - March 11, 2012

We're all walking to raise money for CureSearch/Children's Oncology Group, the premier pediatric cancer research organization, on March 11, 2012.  If you want to make a contribution or join our team, you can do so here:

http://www.curesearchwalk.org/faf/search/searchTeamPart.asp?ievent=1000407&lis=0&kntae1000407=A7C283C42D08448AA6054D9A912AE520&team=4960975

Note that Ben, David, Nicole and I (and other members of our team) all have our own fundraising pages, so make sure you are sponsoring the person you want.  Or you can sponor the team as a whole!  Thanks so much for anything you can do to help!

Milestone

Ben has been out of treatment for over a year! Woo Hoo! Ben's numbers were "perfect" at his last visit so now we only have to go back every 2 months which we are pretty happy about.

The boys started school last week and have been loving it. The teachers and classes are great. Of course, getting used to getting up and out of the house early and the homework is taking the usual adjustment period but they are both doing well.

Ben will be playing for the school's flag football team starting next week and he cannot wait.

Life if good :)

Summer Fun

We have been having a great summer. The boys both went to Ronald McDonald sleep-away camp last month and had a blast. David wasn't sure he wanted to go but since Ben talked about it nonstop for the past year David decided he would give it a try and ended up having a great time! Of course, I was a bit of a mess with both boys leaving but was so happy for them to have this adventure. The rest of the summer we have been trying to be a little more relaxed than usual with less camp time and more family time and play dates. It has worked out well and in our extra time we have been swimming and the boys have been taking tennis and golf lessons.

Ben had an amazing check-up again last week and his numbers continue to be strong. We are only a month away from the one year milestone since the end of chemo and the doctors have said that since he is doing so well that he will only need to go in for blood draws every 2 months!! This has been a long road but things are going so well now. We are so thankful for all of the support from doctors, nurses, family, friends and sometimes even strangers!

Update

As I was sitting here with Ben, who is home from school with a cold, I realized that it has been a very long time since I have made a post. The good news is that no news is usually good news! We have just been really busy with school, friends and sports. Although Ben has been plagued with catching many viruses over this long cold and flu season he has managed to stay out of the hospital except for short visits (no overnights!) and his numbers have been fantastic.

Ben played lacrosse for the first time starting in January and although his team did not have a great season he had an amazing time with this fun sport. He also started on his first little league team this Spring and he has been having a blast so far this season. Although I think he would be having fun no matter what, it doesn't hurt that his team is awesome.

We went on a fun-filled vacation to Hawaii over Spring Break where we spent our days in the pool and beach. Ben had a great time fishing and also some amazing dolphin interaction time. All in all it has been a wonderful few months!

Ben is Great

Ben had another checkup today and all is well. Ben's numbers are great - very high and he is feeling strong. We did discuss the issue of his gallstones and his doctor decided that Ben should see a specialist to find out what they recommend. Apparently, in adults the usual course of action is go in and get them out but we are hoping to avoid that but we also don't want him to have to stay on medication forever. We will see what happens.

The boys have started their new sports. Ben with lacrosse and David with basketball. They are both loving their teams and are doing really well!