Kailem's Cancer Journey
Donation protected
19 years old and battling the disease we all wish was curable. In December of 2014, Kailem had complained of a sharp pain in his right shoulder. A trip to the doctors office was the start of many to come. Kailem was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma, a rare bone cancer which effects mainly children and adolescents. After 10-11 months of chemotherapy and radiation at the Chris O'Brien Lifehouse in Sydney, Kailem had received the much needed news that he had kicked cancers butt!
This was until January 2016, when Kailem felt pain in his right shoulder, where the cancer was originally found. It was then, we were told that Ewing Sarcoma had came back for round two.
In February 2016, he also underwent a 6 hour operation to remove 3 ribs, part of his lung and 3 transverse bones, which limits Kailem to any strenuous physical activity.
Kailem is still continuing with treatment, luckily now it is available for him in the oncology ward of Dubbo Base Hospital, which is easier for him to get to his treatments rather than travelling 5 and a half hours to Sydney.
In August 2016, Kailem had scans to see how the cancer was reacting to the chemotherapy. It's the news we had all hoped and dreamed of - the chemotherapy has shrunken the tumour and is working effectively. However, if Kailem's body becomes immune to this treatment, he will need to try an alternative treatment called immunotherapy, which is typically used to help people fighting Melanoma. This type of chemotherapy is not government funded for people suffering with Ewing Sarcoma. The treatment for Kailem will cost between $15,000-$45,000 depending on how much is needed.
To help Kailem and his family with this potential financial burden, we have started a GoFundMe account to raise money for the treatment.
Your donations will be greatly appreciated by Kailem and his family and will be put towards helping a young man fight the toughest battle of his life!
You can help make a difference by making a donation from as little as $1. Anything to help us reach the goal amount will be greatly appreciated.
UPDATE 08/10/2016;
Kailem had his 3 month scans yesterday and the results revealed some disappointing news that was to be expected as he had been experiencing quite a lot of pain in the past few weeks.
This horrible disease has spread further up the spine, to his lower back, hips and his neck. He underwent one round of radiation immediately which will help Kailem with any pain he has been experiencing - especially nerve pain which has been a major factor.
Unfortunately, the chemotherapy Kailem was undergoing has now turned the tables and is no longer working.
This leads us to one of the last options Kailem has, Immunotherapy - Keytruda.
This is real. This is something that Kailem and all of his loved ones have to face. This treatment may or may not work. We won't know until we start the treatment and see how Kailem is progressing.
But for now we just hope and pray to God that he helps us during this rough time. No matter how scared Kailem gets, we are all in this together and we will fight this!
But there is one thing we do need your help with as the financial burden is still hanging around. With adding up to just over $5,000 per injection, which is required every three weeks, we would appreciate any help we can get. Kailem is starting his first round on Thursday 13/10/16 and may need to do this for 6 months or more depending on how effective it is. This treatment quickly adds up to $45,000 in just 6 months!
5/12/2016 UPDATE:
Unfortunately Kailem lost his battle with Ewing Sarcoma on Thursday December 1st after a 2 year battle for his life.
The pain became unbearable and really started taking a toll on Kailem and his life.
No 19 year old should ever go through the pain Kailem went through. The amount of pain relief Kailem had running through his body constantly each and every day was enough to knock a rhinoceros out, and it still had little to no effect on Kailem.
We had ran out of options.
Kailem & Brandi were engaged on the 16th of November 2016; with an unsure time frame, they were married less than two weeks later on November 27. Please see attached the wedding video of the newly married couple.
https://vimeo.com/193350969
We would just like to take a short moment and extend a huge thank you to everyone who donated to Kailem throughout the 2 years of his battle with Ewings, and for the support that not only Kailem received but his family and friends aswell. It's reassuring to know that there IS and ALWAYS will be people out there willing to help, great or small.
Unfortunately Ewing Sarcoma only receives 1.4% of cancer research funding, due to it being a "rare" form of cancer. Please continue to donate money to Ewing Sarcoma research so that more adolescents and children don't have to go through the pain and the battle like Kailem did.
We lost Kailem, and we don't want any other family having to go through the loss of a loved one; simply because this form of cancer isn't 'popular' enough to get enough funding for research.
If you can spare it, please donate as little or as much as you can in help to find a cure:
http://www.mylifehouse.org.au/support-lifehouse/donate-now/
This was until January 2016, when Kailem felt pain in his right shoulder, where the cancer was originally found. It was then, we were told that Ewing Sarcoma had came back for round two.
In February 2016, he also underwent a 6 hour operation to remove 3 ribs, part of his lung and 3 transverse bones, which limits Kailem to any strenuous physical activity.
Kailem is still continuing with treatment, luckily now it is available for him in the oncology ward of Dubbo Base Hospital, which is easier for him to get to his treatments rather than travelling 5 and a half hours to Sydney.
In August 2016, Kailem had scans to see how the cancer was reacting to the chemotherapy. It's the news we had all hoped and dreamed of - the chemotherapy has shrunken the tumour and is working effectively. However, if Kailem's body becomes immune to this treatment, he will need to try an alternative treatment called immunotherapy, which is typically used to help people fighting Melanoma. This type of chemotherapy is not government funded for people suffering with Ewing Sarcoma. The treatment for Kailem will cost between $15,000-$45,000 depending on how much is needed.
To help Kailem and his family with this potential financial burden, we have started a GoFundMe account to raise money for the treatment.
Your donations will be greatly appreciated by Kailem and his family and will be put towards helping a young man fight the toughest battle of his life!
You can help make a difference by making a donation from as little as $1. Anything to help us reach the goal amount will be greatly appreciated.
UPDATE 08/10/2016;
Kailem had his 3 month scans yesterday and the results revealed some disappointing news that was to be expected as he had been experiencing quite a lot of pain in the past few weeks.
This horrible disease has spread further up the spine, to his lower back, hips and his neck. He underwent one round of radiation immediately which will help Kailem with any pain he has been experiencing - especially nerve pain which has been a major factor.
Unfortunately, the chemotherapy Kailem was undergoing has now turned the tables and is no longer working.
This leads us to one of the last options Kailem has, Immunotherapy - Keytruda.
This is real. This is something that Kailem and all of his loved ones have to face. This treatment may or may not work. We won't know until we start the treatment and see how Kailem is progressing.
But for now we just hope and pray to God that he helps us during this rough time. No matter how scared Kailem gets, we are all in this together and we will fight this!
But there is one thing we do need your help with as the financial burden is still hanging around. With adding up to just over $5,000 per injection, which is required every three weeks, we would appreciate any help we can get. Kailem is starting his first round on Thursday 13/10/16 and may need to do this for 6 months or more depending on how effective it is. This treatment quickly adds up to $45,000 in just 6 months!
5/12/2016 UPDATE:
Unfortunately Kailem lost his battle with Ewing Sarcoma on Thursday December 1st after a 2 year battle for his life.
The pain became unbearable and really started taking a toll on Kailem and his life.
No 19 year old should ever go through the pain Kailem went through. The amount of pain relief Kailem had running through his body constantly each and every day was enough to knock a rhinoceros out, and it still had little to no effect on Kailem.
We had ran out of options.
Kailem & Brandi were engaged on the 16th of November 2016; with an unsure time frame, they were married less than two weeks later on November 27. Please see attached the wedding video of the newly married couple.
https://vimeo.com/193350969
We would just like to take a short moment and extend a huge thank you to everyone who donated to Kailem throughout the 2 years of his battle with Ewings, and for the support that not only Kailem received but his family and friends aswell. It's reassuring to know that there IS and ALWAYS will be people out there willing to help, great or small.
Unfortunately Ewing Sarcoma only receives 1.4% of cancer research funding, due to it being a "rare" form of cancer. Please continue to donate money to Ewing Sarcoma research so that more adolescents and children don't have to go through the pain and the battle like Kailem did.
We lost Kailem, and we don't want any other family having to go through the loss of a loved one; simply because this form of cancer isn't 'popular' enough to get enough funding for research.
If you can spare it, please donate as little or as much as you can in help to find a cure:
http://www.mylifehouse.org.au/support-lifehouse/donate-now/
Organizer
Brandi Wadwell
Organizer
Dubbo, NSW