When 16-year-old Oliver, a star quarterback for his high school football team, discovered a lump under his arm in February 2024, he never expected he’d have to tackle a very serious health issue.
Oliver never thought much of the lump until he began to have trouble breathing and developed severe stomach pain that made it very difficult to eat. He also started to miss a lot of school. His mom, April, took him to their local emergency department (ED) because she and her husband, Shawn, were becoming very concerned.
Thankfully, the doctor on call in the ED connected them with a pediatric doctor, who was able to examine Oliver and determined he needed to go to the IWK right away.
At the IWK, Oliver underwent many medical tests, including a bone marrow test and a spinal tap, that helped them figure out why Oliver was so sick and not recovering. He had stage 3 Anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL)—a rare type of blood cancer.
“You just never expect that in your life. You never think that you’re going to get diagnosed with cancer at all,” shared Oliver on hearing the devastating news.
Oliver was admitted to the IWK’s Hematology and Oncology Unit, where he’d undergo six rounds of chemotherapy—with each round lasting five days. He also had to have a tube inserted into his chest cavity to drain fluid that built up and caused him a lot of discomfort.
Although Oliver finished his cancer treatments in August 2024, his recovery is ongoing. He’s working on regaining the weight he lost when he was sick and rebuilding his appetite for food. He’s also training to get stronger, so he can return to playing football.
In October 2024, Oliver and his family received the best news—Oliver was cancer-free. To ensure he continues to stay healthy and cancer-free, he will visit the IWK every three months for ongoing checkups. For Oliver and his family, this gives them peace of mind because they know there’s always a chance the cancer could come back.
“It’s important to support the IWK to give every family the opportunity to see their child healthy again,” shared April. “When you get time with your child that might have been taken from you, there’s nothing more valuable to a parent.”
