Our sweet little love has Stage 4 High Risk Neuroblastoma. Our family left our lives behind in FL and moved to St Jude in TN on a path to healing him
05/18/2024
We got our results back and as we prayed for, Slater has made the 5-years-clear milestone! This little warrior, with his brother at his side, has been through an unimaginable journey and reached a milestone we once couldn’t even imagine seeing. He has walked alongside friends in the thick of it, some no longer with us in physical form, and he never lost faith. That’s not easy for a little boy who has to endure and feel so much. Now we will transition to a new clinic, leaving our beloved doctors and nurses at D clinic to care for the new kiddos who make their way to this amazing hospital. We will still travel yearly to St Jude for tests and scans, but mostly to follow Slater’s progress and monitor for, and manage side effects from his difficult treatment. We couldn’t have gotten here without the support and prayers of our friends and family, and of course the angels doing their part on the other side. We continue to pray for easy roads ahead, and for the health and comfort of our battle buddies still here, as well as those passed. We will surprise the kids with a stop at their favorite Orlando attraction on the way home. We couldn’t be more humbled by the news, and more grateful for the families, friends and doctors that helped us reach this day. ❤ ❤ ❤
05/16/2024
We are back at our Memphis home (St Jude) for our 5 year scans. It’s amazing to see our extended St Jude family, the nurses and doctors we love so much. Prayers and positive vibes for clear scans and uneventful tests are always appreciated. This is a big milestone for Slater! We drove this time, so we aren’t leaving without results. Last time we had to catch a flight and didn’t get the results until the following week. Talk about nerves! As always, please pray for families and kiddos still in the fight, and especially those that have gained their wings.
12/04/2023
12/04/2023
It's been a while since we've updated our page but I couldn't wait to share this amazing moment with you all. Slater is doing great, and is 4+ years out from treatment now. We just got back from New York where we were invited to share our St Jude experience with Kelly Clarkson on her show. She surprised us by having Marlo Thomas pop out from behind closed doors, and then treated us to VIP access to the tree lighting show in Rockefeller Square. It was a magical trip, and both brothers are unbelievably proud to share their story in support of St jude. Here is a link to the show! Happy Holidays everyone!
Kelly meets Shane and Shari and their son Slater, who at just 4-years-old was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. Shane and Shari open up about their journey of p...
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Our youngest son, Slater, was diagnosed earlier this year with Stage 4 High Risk Neuroblastoma, at the age of 4. In April, 2018, we, along with his 6-year old brother, have moved to St Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, TN, leaving behind our home in Florida, family and friends, as we get our little boy the treatment he needs. Our treatment plan was for an 18-month intensive treatment which includes surgery, chemotherapy, bone marrow/stem cell transplant, radiation, and immunotherapy, along with other supportive therapies. We still have a long ways to go.
Our happy-go-lucky sweet boy, always with a smile, had a tumor grow from the adrenal glands above the kidneys, to which had already spread at the time of diagnosis. The disease was spread to his hip bones, pelvis, all the way up his spine, in his clavicles, and in his skull. It had also spread to his bone marrow, which consisted mostly of diseased cells. As a parent, standing in the hallway outside the hospital room, getting the diagnosis of what was finally ailing our little boy, that it was cancer, Stage 4, had knocked the wind out of our lungs. Just recollecting that memory of those months ago is traumatic to share, to type. It’s an experience I hope no other parent of a child on this earth ever has to endure.
We are now broadly sharing our story and experience because we know, especially with one of the extremely rare cancers like ours, Neuroblastoma, are not often known or available. Neuroblastoma occurs in less than 800 cases a year. Our little boy is high risk, because a) his age. Most children with this disease are diagnosed by age 5, and he was a few months shy of his 5th birthday; however, the older you are, the harder it is to cure. Our doctor said that for Neuroblastoma, “he’s old”, and though it’s hard to think of a 5-yr old as being “old”, but for this disease, it rather is. Success rates for curing this disease are far better for infants and toddlers, less so for children older than ages 2-3. The second reason he is High Risk is because it had already spread throughout his body, including his bone marrow, to which we required a bone marrow/stem cell transplant. Yet, the best place for us to be is St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, where there are patients like him, that have experienced great success. We can’t wait for him to be a success story too, it is our hope, our belief, with continuous prayers, that he too shall overcome this.
The day after his official diagnosis on April 1st (which coincidentally was Easter Sunday, and April Fools Day), we were accepted into St. Jude as they had an open protocol for his type of cancer to take him as a patient, and the following day after that, we were on a plane with a few suitcases to Memphis, TN, and will be here until at least next Summer 2019, but hopefully at least by Fall 2019. If any of you would like to help and contribute, we would be forever grateful for your generosity and support.
It’s difficult to acknowledge that indeed this has happened to our child, but living here at St. Jude has shown me that SO many children and families are suffering too, from all kinds of childhood cancers. This hospital, the staff, the medical breakthroughs and the science, are bar-none. The success and hope and miracles this hospital has given so many children and families, we feel blessed that we are able to get our treatment here. Please find it in your heart to support St Jude in any way you can. They are saving children’s lives each and every day. Thank you for being part of our journey.
