Tristan had his first chemotherapy on the 24th. While the treatment didn't make him sick, it did lower blood counts,necessitating a transfusion. The hope is that chemo will shrink the main tumor making surgery safer. Tristan is having chemo every day this week, so we are crossing our fingers and saying prayers for him.

Again the PayPal address to donate is tristantran15@gmail.com under all the donations go straiget to the family.

Here is today's picture of Tristan.

The Beginning of Tristan Tran's Infantile Cancer Battle

Jessica and Kenneth Tran were excited and thrilled when their son Tristan arrived. Tristan's older brother Kenneth Jr., or Little K as he is better known, was ecstatic at finally having the little brother he always wanted. The Trans' world was perfect, or so they thought.

Almost immediately small troubles began to rear their head. At Tristan's two week check-up he still wasn't back up to his birth weight. At his one month check-up he still hadn't gained as much weight as they would like. Jessica reported that Tristan seemed to have trouble pooping and was definitely in abdominal pain. The doctor, like most doctors would, assumed it was colic and prescribed gas drops.

At his two month check-up Tristan still wasn't gaining weight so a referral to another doctor and to a nutritionist was done. Jessica was breastfeeding every two hours, and supplementing with Stage 1 baby foods to help Tristan gain weight. The nutritionist, feeling there was neglect referred the case to Social Services. Social Services would make one visit to Jessica before the reason for Tristan's inability to gain weight became apparent. During that visit they would tell Jessica to quit breastfeeding and to "pump and dump." Jessica would cry about this mandate for hours.

Then on December 17, 2015 Tristan woke with his legs swollen, the right one greater than the left. Jessica called the family physician who referred her back to the specialist they had seen. The specialist did an x-ray in the course of his exam and discovered what appeared to be a mass in Tristan's abdomen. Ultrasound confirmed the mass and Tristan was immediately admitted to the hospital.

A CAT scan and a biopsy were done. The CAT scan showed the tumor in Tristan's abdomen to be approximately the size of a large lemon. It is attached to his prostate, bladder and rectum. The eventual results of the biopsy would be a childhood cancer called neuroblastoma.  It is already in Tristan's lymph nodes.

On Sunday December 20th, Tristan was taken by ambulance to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Medical Center for possible emergency surgery to remove the tumor. The doctors at Chapel Hill were able to remove some of the pressure building up in Tristan's abdomen so surgery can be postponed.

Throughout this Kenneth has had to essentially stop working. His boss is holding his job for when he can return, but there are still bills racking up like utilities, rent and furniture payments. There is gas to go back and forth from Asheville to Chapel Hill so that Little K can be with his brother and parents for Christmas. There may be medic expenses. Tristan is covered under Medicaid, but due to cuts in the program over the past several years there are large gaps in it. Like all parents Jessica and Kenneth want to give Tristan the best fighting chance they can, even if that means going into debt. No one's care should be limited by what the State can afford, especially a three-month-old fighting for his life.

We will be organizing a PayPal account for Tristan's medical expenses and the family's living expenses.  If you're interested in donating please leave a comment and we'll help you with the process. It's quite easy, just choose to donate as friends and family to the address trustantran15@gmail.com.  Thank you.

PS - Tristan starts chemotherapy today, December 24th, 2015.