No one wants to hear the word, “cancer,” especially if the doctors are talking about your child, but that is what Slater Bushman’s parents heard when he was four-years-old.
The diagnosis, Stage 4 high-risk Neuroblastoma, is a dangerous, rare, and often fatal one for older children. The Florida family found Slater the best care they could and traveled to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. Since the treatments were intense, the whole family relocated to be near him through the fight.
Boy did he fight. Through the more-than-a-year-long process, Slater’s mom posted pictures and updates to a Facebook page she created to keep family and friends in the loop.
Throughout the 425-day battle, (409 of which were in St. Jude’s) Slater underwent a stem-cell transplant, chemo, radiation, surgery, bone marrow transplant, and immunotherapy.
The particular type of cancer Slater battled occurs in less than 800 cases a year and has a lower instance of remission in older children than in infants, yet no matter what the treatments put him through, the boy was always cheerful and smiling through it all.
In a video captured by Slater’s mom, the staff who treated and cared for Slater for over a year were just as excited for him as he and his older brother were to hear he was cancer-free.
The silly paper-ball and confetti fight that ensues when Dr. Sarah and the staff share the news he is done with treatments. What a fun way to celebrate a win!
