Brendan’s Brave Journey

It was a mixture of love and anger that prompted Krista to post on Facebook the excruciating photo of her son Brendan during craniospinal radiation treatment.

The photo was posted with a simple caption, “The next time you think you’re having a bad day…”

When Erica, Brendan’s wish manager at the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Michigan, saw the photo, she shared it internally with her colleagues. Her note was just as simple: This photo is why we work hard. It’s why we are here.

Brendan is 7 years old. And he’s exactly why we are here and why supporters of the Foundation and its mission are so vital.

Sept. 29, 2008, is a date forever etched in the memory of Brendan’s mom and his dad, Scott. That’s the day Brendan, just 5 years old, was diagnosed with Medulloblastoma – cancer of the brain and spinal cord. Brendan had been having headaches for a couple weeks. A few back and forth trips to the doctor and the answer was possible allergies. But Krista knew her son. She knew as soon as the headaches worsened and he seemed off balance and as soon as he started throwing up that it was not allergies. So she took Brendan to the emergency room and with one scan, they had their diagnosis: brain cancer.

That started a journey that was completely life changing, “The new normal from the life we were used to,” Krista said. That life includes sister Skylar, 10, and brother Keaton, 9. And for a little boy who loves hockey and video games and doing arts and crafts, 6 weeks of radiation and 9 rounds of chemotherapy is certainly not the “normal” anyone ever imagined.

Brendan endured 6 weeks of radiation during his treatment at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital in Grand Rapids, about 30 miles from the family’s home. Nine rounds of chemotherapy were to follow. But after 7 rounds, Krista said there was a big turn. The cancer had spread to Brendan’s spinal cord. That led to very high doses of in-patient chemotherapy and a very scary time when Brendan went into septic shock where they thought they would lose him. And even then, the chemotherapy was not working.

But Brendan is a fighter with an optimistic spirit that spreads to everyone around him. So he got stronger. Strong enough to go back to radiation – the highest dose allowed.

“The journey is now a fight,” Krista said. But Brendan is amazing and so resilient. “There are very few moments when he is discouraged,” Krista said. That resiliency is coming into play as Brendan waits for approval from his doctor to go on his special Make-A-Wish adventure.

Brendan’s wish is to go to Walt Disney World® Resort. The trip, Krista said, will give the family a mental break from treatments and fears. A chance to focus on fun and focus on the kids. Brendan’s brother and sister are doing well because they take their cues from Brendan, but they do get a little scared.

Brendan just finished his last radiation treatment. If he is strong enough, he and his family will take his magical trip before he begins a 28-week course of outpatient chemotherapy. And if that treatment puts him in remission, the hope is that Brendan will receive a life-saving bone marrow transplant.

But it’s one step at a time for Krista and Scott. And those steps are led by a little boy whose strength and balance have found a new normal after surgery and treatments. He doesn’t play outside as much because of his new wheelchair, but he does love games and music. And the music he’s drawn to may be the key to the sunshine he spreads to his friends and family.

Brendan loves the song “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus. Krista said that by listening to those lyrics, she believes it helps him fight. Anyone familiar with the song knows that it’s about climbing a mountain and keeping faith. The lyrics also say it isn’t what’s waiting on the other side of the mountain, it’s the climb that matters most.

The song begins: “I can almost see it, that dream I am dreaming…”

We are all dreaming a dream right now and it’s for Brendan to keep on singing and to have his magical Disney wish. And when he returns home, we hope his climb will be an amazing one.

Written by Laura Varon Brown.