My brother had cancer – Becca’s story
I remember the exact night when Erik, my brother, was diagnosed with cancer. It was October 31, 2000, Halloween night. My brother, Erik, had a very strange cough and my parents were starting to get worried. So, my Dad decided to take him to the hospital. I can’t remember the rest of that night very clearly, but my Mom and Dad have told me stories. This changed my life forever.
My Mom said that, “There is nothing like hearing that your child has cancer.” I can’t imagine the feeling. All my teachers and friends were really supportive. The whole class made cards asking my 3-year-old brother to get better. At the young age of 5, in Kindergarten, this was a thrill to me. But, I still worried a lot when my brother was in the hospital, even though he responded well to the treatment and was quickly in remission.
Unfortunately, later in the year the cancer came back and my brother was in need of a bone marrow transplant. Being his sister I was tested to see if I was a match. This would determine if I could be his donor. Surprisingly, I was a perfect match. I believe this was a true miracle because the doctors told us one out of six could be a perfect match to his or her sibling.
I was scared because I was young and had no clue what was going to happen to me, or my brother; but I knew this would help my family. So I had the courage to put my fear aside and look at this experience in a positive way. I had to have surgery to remove the bone marrow for my brother, but I was excited about staying in the hospital with extra attention and special meals. After everything, there were no side effects, except for feeling good about saving my brother. This is still an amazing feeling.
I will never forget this experience. Although this was hard, we were able to have some great experiences such as staying at the Ronald McDonald House, going to Disney through the Make-a-Wish and summer camp at Hole in the Wall Gang Camp. But all I really care about is being together as a family. I’m grateful that I was able to put my fears aside and help my brother.