September is National Leukemia Awareness Month, and one family in Biggar is currently fighting against the disease in their 8-year-old son.

CJ Dunn was first diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia just days before his 4th birthday in July of 2016. His treatment began almost immediately, with his family taking him back and forth to Saskatoon. The treatment lasted for 3 and a half years until late September of 2019. Everything was looking great at the time, with CJ continuing to get monthly checkups as time went on.

Then in July, CJ began to feel ill and nauseous. On the way in to get a checkup, he suffered stroke-like symptoms, and immediate testing confirmed the presence of Leukemia cells in his bone marrow. Fortunately, since the family was able to notice it in time, CJ was once again put on treatment. A 5 per cent Leukemia cell count is needed to count as a positive case, and CJ only had around 2 per cent. His case was still considered positive however, as it was the same strain that he had when he was first diagnosed.

CJ’s percentage has since fallen to 0.07. Originally, CJ was going to be brought to Calgary for a high-risk category bone marrow transplant. However, after plenty of discussion between his doctors, the transplant team, and the developers of a new kind of chemotherapy, CJ is now able to take a standard-risk treatment without having to travel to Calgary.

CJ’s mother, Laura Stacey, explained how this new treatment plan will be different.

“It is much longer, but actually, the treatment plan in general will be less hard on CJ as well. So obviously, the doctors can’t just pick and choose, you can be standard-risk, you can be high-risk. It’s individualized, and so just because ours is a little different, we weren’t at five per cent, but also we didn’t get down to 0, there’s just a couple of different options they can take.”

The news that they won’t have to travel to Calgary put the family in high spirits, as they will now be able to stay together through various holidays and personal events, including an upcoming baby delivery. The downside though, is that CJ will have to return to taking a form of chemotherapy injections, which Laura said can be quite painful as the medicine travels throughout the body. They were forced to use the injections, as CJ is allergic to the other form of medicine that was originally offered.

While this is undeniably a hard situation for any child to go through, the family has always remained optimistic. Having already gone through several years of treatments and trips to the hospital, Laura expressed their confidence in facing CJ’s relapse.

“We had a lot of complications the first time with CJ, so knowing things that work, things that don’t work, the things that we like, it’s much easier to voice your voice, myself and CJ’s, with how you want certain things because that’s what you're comfortable with, and it’s definitely much easier that way.”

As for CJ himself, as the one who has had to personally deal with Leukemia, Laura explained that he is aware of the gravity of his situation, especially now that he’s older. She also shared what C

J likes to do when he has some free time, and how he’s able to keep his mood up.

“He likes to just hang out at home and be in, whether it’s lost in his games, or lost in LEGO, or anything like that, and it works. Plus, we have so many friends in the hospital in Saskatoon, both therapists, and the nurses. When you form a friendship with them after seeing them for 3 years, you get comfortable with them, and he likes that.”

In dealing with COVID, Laura said that while her and the rest of the family were concerned, she said that quarantine didn’t change that much of their lives. CJ’s condition meant they were already keeping away from any big crowds, and locations that might pose a threat to his immune system. As he got better though, he was able to visit friends for birthdays and light parties.

CJ has also had his family along the way to support him. Not just Laura, but also his 7-year-old step-sister Quinn, and his 2-year-old half-brother Grayson. While he has already walked a hard path, CJ still has obstacles to overcome. While his siblings may not be fully aware of his situation, his family will be with him every step of the way.

Laura encourages everyone to check with the Canadian Blood Services to see if they are eligible for stem cell donation, which can help those who have Leukemia. She is also a member of the group “Small but Mighty,” which is a group for young people with cancer which holds several fundraiser events, with money going towards cancer research.

 

For the Canadian Blood Service: click here

For Small but Mighty: click here