We’ve been getting a lot of questions about this past week, so I wanted to share what happened for those who may not have heard the story from the beginning. I hope this helps answer the questions while shining a light on the amazing ways God is already working.

On Sunday, August 16, 2020, Brayden was playing a harmless game of touch football with our young adults group at church. He tripped over “nothing” and took a spill, landing on his stomach. He felt a sharp pain that subsided and didn’t seem to be a concern. Later at home, he complained of what he thought was heartburn, which he believed was the source of some increasing chest pain he had over the previous week. Working at Costco means he has to wear a mask for his whole work day, so over the past few months he had been developing what we all thought were symptoms of asthma, which we’ve heard has been an issue for many people.

Throughout the night, his pain worsened, so we decided he should go to the emergency room that night, rather than wait until the morning. When he got there, they did a chest x-ray and said they found something abnormal in his chest. Due to the restrictions as a result of Covid-19, he had decided to go alone to the hospital and was texting updates throughout the night. I never went to bed that night, as they had given him painkillers for the pain in his side and would need a ride home. Even with my history of cancer, it didn’t occur to me that something “abnormal” would turn out to be something this serious. I honestly thought he might have Covid-19, so I was mostly bracing myself for quarantining our family for the next few weeks.

At 5:14am, I got a phone call from Brayden. When I answered, it wasn’t his voice but a doctor’s voice that answered me. She explained that Brayden had ruptured his spleen and that they had done a number of tests. The results of those tests were that he either had lymphoma or leukemia. I told her we would be there as soon as possible and tried to grasp what I had just heard.

In my shock, I could barely breathe, but I needed to wake up Kurt so we could get to the hospital. All I could think was that Brayden had been given this horrible news all by himself and had nobody there to comfort him. I know emergency doctors aren’t oncologists and it’s not as common to diagnose these types of conditions in the emergency room, but I don’t feel this should be standard protocol. If someone has a support system, whether it’s family or a friend, I believe the healthcare providers should give a casual suggestion to the patient to ask someone else to be there before giving this news. They should also probably avoid telling a mother her son has cancer right before she has to drive to reach him… but I digress. We got there within a half hour, but it’s a half hour I will always regret as his mom.

The staff at the hospital redeemed themselves that morning. They allowed our older kids to come in the room with us, giving us some much-needed family time to support Brayden before he was transported to the ICU at UW. He was in critical condition due to the ruptured spleen, the presence of a large (fist-sized) mass in his chest, as well as the status of his blood count. His white blood cell count was at 200,000 and the norm is anywhere from 4,000 to 11,000.

By Monday evening, we were given a preliminary diagnosis of T-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (T-ALL). The reason his breathing had become so shallow was that the mass in his chest was putting pressure on his lungs, decreasing his lung capacity. The pain from the ruptured spleen had become so severe that he was on morphine and still in terrible pain. This was so much to take in over the course of just hours, and the current regulations meant that only one of us could be with him. It made the most sense for me to go and to be the one to ask questions. I guess one benefit of having a history of cancer is that it can better prepare you for understanding in the future. I just never dreamed it would be my 20-year-old healthy son.

Brayden began chemo on Wednesday. His first treatment was an injection into his spine, which is the standard for his diagnosis. We got great news after they had completed this treatment – no cancer in the spinal fluid! He also had an infusion of another chemo drug that same day. The following day, we got word that his count had dropped from 200,000 down to 70,000 after just one treatment! This is great news as well, since it means the treatment should be effective to eradicate this cancer, even though the road to get there will be very difficult to travel.

Over the past week, we took 24-hour shifts between the adult kids and myself and Kurt. The current regulations allow only one person every 24 hours, though we were thrilled that they allowed our pastor to come pray for him on Wednesday. He received another treatment on Saturday, which took a lot more out of him than the first. His course of treatment will take 7 months, followed by a 2-year maintenance drug. Treatments will be at least once a week.

Below are some specific prayer requests:

Pray for continued minimal side effects. We know these will compound over the course of treatment, but he has tolerated them pretty well so far and we are hoping this will continue.

Pray for strength to continue eating a healthy diet. He lost 15 pounds in one week, so his body is feeling pretty weak.

Pray for continued improvement in his blood counts.

Pray for those who will hear about Brayden’s faith through this trial, that they would come to know the God he loves. His strength and resolve is beautiful to watch. We are so proud of how he is using this trial to give people a reason for the hope that he has.

Pray for Brayden’s spirit to remain lifted. He loves working and hiking, both of which he won’t be able to do for up to a year. This was a hard thing for all of us to hear, as we know how much joy these bring to him.

Pray for no sicknesses to enter our home. Visitors will be limited to close friends and family and all who enter must be free of symptoms from any illness. This is also hard for Brayden because he is very social and will probably be tired of all of us pretty soon! 

Thank you so much for your continued prayers, love, and support! A Go Fund Me account was set up for him by some coworkers/friends and many have brought meals already. We can hardly express the way this has blessed us all! Brayden was able to come home exactly one week after he left to go to the hospital that Sunday night. We are so thankful for the ways God is already working and we trust Him to continue!

I’ll be using this page to update everyone on Brayden’s progress. Please feel free to share, as I know there are people praying all over the country! You can also subscribe for updates, which will send an email to you when there is a new post.

Psalm 121

I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip—
    he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel
    will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord watches over you—
    the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all harm—
    he will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going
    both now and forevermore.