Help Wesley Bogese Battle Rare Eye Cancer Retinoblastoma

In August 2024, my otherwise healthy son, Wesley Bogese, was diagnosed with Grade E (advanced) Retinoblastoma, a rare eye cancer that primarily effects infants and toddlers. We learned he is completely blind out of his left eye due to a 16 mm tumor.

Only 200-300 children are diagnosed with Retinoblastoma every year in the US. We are traveling from Richmond, VA to Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York City to see Dr. David H. Abramson, the leading specialist on Retinoblastoma in the country.

His office recommended a surgery to completely remove Wesley's left eye, but we elected to begin treatment with intra-arterial chemotherapy (IAC) since there is a chance it could work to shrink the tumor.

We return to NYC on September 10th, 2024 to see if it has succeeded in shrinking the tumor. If so, we will continue with more sessions of IAC. If not, we will be forced to remove Wesley's left eye and have him fitted for a prosthetic.

Even with insurance, this is a wildly costly endeavor, likely to be 25k+

All FMLA leave in VA is completely unpaid.

PLEASE, if you are able, donate. 100% will go to Wesley's ongoing medical battle and in the unlikely instance there is extra, I will donate it MSK's pediatric cancer research program.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart, and Wesley's :) We would be nowhere without the love of our dear friends and family.