Jake the Great
Donation protected
Jake is the the youngest of 5 siblings, and is the son of Keri (Watson) and Travis Erickson. He is also one of the sweetest 2 year-olds you might ever meet. He is such a tender loving boy, and has stolen the hearts of his entire family from day one.
He was born a healthy, thriving little boy, but began presenting with some slight symptoms at 2 months of age. Doctors began documenting these symptoms at 6 months of age, and by 13 months of age, he was referred to Mayo for further testing. He initially had delayed speech, abnormal tongue movements, and involuntary body movements and posturing. He was diagnosed with Dystonia (a movement disorder) and was put on a trial medication. As time passed he had several seizure-like episodes and an EEG revealed “findings consistent with generalized epilepsy”. In addition, he began having intermittent issues swallowing as his brain was not giving his body the necessary messages. He was reevaluated again after a few months and was referred again for more testing. The tests included a lumbar puncture, which came back positive for Anti- NMDA Receptor Encephalitis.
This a rare disease which occurs when antibodies produced by the body's own immune system attack NMDA receptors in the brain. NMDA receptors are proteins that control electrical impulses in the brain. Symptoms can include prominent psychiatric symptoms, seizures, confusion and memory loss, movement disorders, and the inability to regulate important body functions such as blood pressure, body temperature, breathing, swallowing etc.
Jake is being seen by a specialized pediatric brain team at Texas Children's Hospital. He was immediately started on monthly IVIG infusions back in April, but these have not been enough to remove the inflammation in his brain. Jake's Texas doctors have teamed with an oncologist at Roger Maris Cancer Center to administer chemotherapy which will deplete his body’s bcells for 6-9 months, making his body incapable of producing any antibodies, both good and bad. The goal is that the the antibodies attacking his brain will no longer be able to be produced! Unfortunately, this also means that when he is sick or exposed to infection, his body will also not be able to produce the natural antibodies to fight against infections. After 6 months they will reevaluate whether he needs to repeat the chemo again or not.
On August 7th, Jake’s family will head back to Fargo for Jake to have a port surgically implanted and undergo another chemo infusion. He will return the next week to Fargo again for 2 IVIG infusions and then travel back to Texas the following week to see his brain team. He will continue his 2 IVIG infusions a month and return to Texas again in November.
This fundraiser will be a huge blessing to their family as they travel for many appointments and infusions over the next year. It will help to offset the expenses of flights, hotels, and childcare for the other kids during this difficult time. Please keep Jake and his family in your prayers
He was born a healthy, thriving little boy, but began presenting with some slight symptoms at 2 months of age. Doctors began documenting these symptoms at 6 months of age, and by 13 months of age, he was referred to Mayo for further testing. He initially had delayed speech, abnormal tongue movements, and involuntary body movements and posturing. He was diagnosed with Dystonia (a movement disorder) and was put on a trial medication. As time passed he had several seizure-like episodes and an EEG revealed “findings consistent with generalized epilepsy”. In addition, he began having intermittent issues swallowing as his brain was not giving his body the necessary messages. He was reevaluated again after a few months and was referred again for more testing. The tests included a lumbar puncture, which came back positive for Anti- NMDA Receptor Encephalitis.
This a rare disease which occurs when antibodies produced by the body's own immune system attack NMDA receptors in the brain. NMDA receptors are proteins that control electrical impulses in the brain. Symptoms can include prominent psychiatric symptoms, seizures, confusion and memory loss, movement disorders, and the inability to regulate important body functions such as blood pressure, body temperature, breathing, swallowing etc.
Jake is being seen by a specialized pediatric brain team at Texas Children's Hospital. He was immediately started on monthly IVIG infusions back in April, but these have not been enough to remove the inflammation in his brain. Jake's Texas doctors have teamed with an oncologist at Roger Maris Cancer Center to administer chemotherapy which will deplete his body’s bcells for 6-9 months, making his body incapable of producing any antibodies, both good and bad. The goal is that the the antibodies attacking his brain will no longer be able to be produced! Unfortunately, this also means that when he is sick or exposed to infection, his body will also not be able to produce the natural antibodies to fight against infections. After 6 months they will reevaluate whether he needs to repeat the chemo again or not.
On August 7th, Jake’s family will head back to Fargo for Jake to have a port surgically implanted and undergo another chemo infusion. He will return the next week to Fargo again for 2 IVIG infusions and then travel back to Texas the following week to see his brain team. He will continue his 2 IVIG infusions a month and return to Texas again in November.
This fundraiser will be a huge blessing to their family as they travel for many appointments and infusions over the next year. It will help to offset the expenses of flights, hotels, and childcare for the other kids during this difficult time. Please keep Jake and his family in your prayers
Organizer and beneficiary
Christy Olafson
Organizer
Warroad, MN
Keri Diane
Beneficiary