Lil' Bruce's Story

Little Bruce's Story

Little Bruce was born on February 15th, 1997. He came into this world a perfect little baby boy with ten fingers and ten
toes. We watched as our little boy rolled over for the first time, started to crawl, took his first steps, and spoke his first
words. Life with our new little baby was as expected. Toward the end of 1999 things began to change. Brucie began having
these episodes. He would come up to me or his daddy and say that he was going to pass out. He would use those words
because he actually did pass out twice before these episodes started. I think maybe the feeling was similar. During one of
these so called episodes he would stop whatever he was doing and sit or lay down. I would usually grab him and hold him in
my arms until he snapped out of it. His face would appear flushed and he would stare off with an empty look. Sometimes
he would try and talk but couldn't. His words would come out muffled. This lasted about a minute or so. When he would
snap out of it he would usually be extremely tired and would usually fall asleep. There were times when he would have 10
in a day and there were times when he would go days or weeks without having one at all. We took him to the pediatrician.
He referred us to a Cardiologist, the Cardiologist referred us to a Endocrinologist. No one could tell us what was wrong with
our son. He acted and appeared to be normal. On all the tests given by the doctors he would be normal. No one could
seem to understand what was going on, they needed to see him as it was happening.

I began to do some research on the internet. Something brought me to read about seizures. This is when I came across
what is called a Complex Partial Seizure. The description fit it was what would happen with Brucie. So what caused these
types of seizures???? I continue to read and found that one cause was a brain tumor located on the temporal lobe! I found a
neurologist, made the appointment and then we took Brucie. This doctor looked at me like I was crazy. He told me I was
wrong and what I was describing wasn't the typical description of this kind of seizure.   I argued with him until he finally
asked what I wanted to do. I told him I wanted a MRI. On August 28, 2002 Brucie had his first MRI We had to wait a few
days for the results. When that neurologist called Brucie just had a episode and was asleep on the couch. The doctor
greeted me and then informed me that the MRI showed tumor growth in Brucie's right temporal lobe. At that moment all I
could do was say I told you so and then sat right there on the kitchen floor with nothing else to say.

Big Bruce and I met with two different Neurosurgeons and decided to go with the second of the two. This surgeon wanted to
remove the tumor. He believed he could remove the tumor and Bruce would be seizure free. October 2, 2002 was surgery
day. This day seemed like the longest day of our lives. We sat and waited for hours, about 10 hours if I remember
correctly. By that evening we finally got to see Brucie. His little head wrapped up. He looked like a little angel. I sat next
to him and that is where I stayed until we got to go home 3 days later. He was back to himself in no time. He returned to
his Kindergarten class about a week and a half later. Everything returned to normal and Brucie was seizures free! Our
little boy could be a little boy and not have to worry about having a seizure. This was an amazing feeling. Life could be
normal. The Follow up MRI scans showed no new growth, no change. Just what we wanted.

Then the March 2005 MRI came, it had been one year since his last scan. Big Bruce didn't go with us this time since we
thought everything was okay. After the MRI was over we met with the doctor. He came in and sat down and then...he told
me that the MRI showed new growth and he would present the case at tumor board and call us. I had to be calm, not appear
scared, sad, mad, nothing for Brucie's sake. I called Big Bruce and when he asked the question is everything okay. All I
could say to him was no it is not. The phone turned to silence, there was nothing that either of us could say. It was a long
drive home. A week later we received the call. The tumor board had decided the best treatment was another surgery to
remove the tumor. He was too young for radiation or chemotherapy.

We waited about a week to tell Brucie. He was not happy to say the least. There were many hours of tears and us trying to
explain the unexplainable. After a few days we all began to operate on autopilot. We had done this before we can do it
again. Lil' Bruce quickly realized that he could use his surgery to his advantage. He began putting in his special requests
for when he returned home. One of those requests was that he could grow his hair long like all his friends. Of course we
agreed, anything to see him smile.

March 23, 2005 was surgery day. Again we sat and waited, this time about 10 hours. Evening came and we were able to see
him. Big Bruce hung out for a little while then he had to leave to go get Brucie's little brother Brent and go home for the
night. I settled in right next to his bed just like last time. The doctor came in for one of those annoying check ups in the
middle of the night. He woke Brucie up and had do a couple of different exercises. He asked him to lift his right leg, which
was no problem then the left leg.........no movement. I remember the look on his face, as he was staring down at his leg. it
was a look of determination, he was going to make that leg move. He couldn't do it. He didn't say anything just closed his
eyes and went back to sleep. The next few days were difficult but he slowly regained his strength. He was able to come
home 3 days later. Occupational therapy and other exercises helped Brucie regain his strength. He would get frustrated but
he was determined. Life continued. We began noticing changes in Bruce. His behavior, emotions, and his school work
began lacking. There were days when I felt like I was getting to know my son all over again. He was a different little boy
then before the surgery. Brucie started to complain about how he would daze off or stare off into space in class and that he
could not snap out of it when it happened. The doctors thought it could be seizures. He had an EEG, which did not show any
seizure activity. So we were left questioning what was happening.

October 9, 2006 follow up MRI revealed another new tumor. This time it is closer to the thalamus so our doctor explained
that he would not want to operate and he referred us to see a Neuro-Oncologist to discuss possibly treating it with
chemotherapy. That was a difficult day walking into the Pediatric Cancer Treatment Center for the appointment. I never
imagined I would be taking my child to the Oncology Clinic especially since my child did not have cancer. At our
appointment the decision was to do another follow up MRI in three months then at that time if necessary we would start
chemotherapy. When we left that appointment we felt horrible. All of a sudden our child had a condition that wasn't going
away. It was a lifetime of watching and waiting. All this time we thought it would just go away. The next three months I
felt like a zombie. I could not think about anything but Chemotherapy, other treatments, which vitamins or supplements
would help Brucie.

Brucie had his MRI in January and yes the tumor was still there. The doctor decided to wait another three months to
monitor the growth rate a little better. A few days after that appointment, I talked to Big Bruce about getting a second
opinion. I felt like we needed a fresh new outlook on Brucie's situation. Big Bruce was very supportive of the idea. We went
in for the second opinion and really liked the doctor and what he had to say. A lot of what he had to say was the same but
some was different. I think the most important thing was that he had a more positive outlook on every situation. We all
felt really good.

April 23, 2007

Brucie had his MRI last Tuesday and his appointment with the doctor was today. The MRI did not show any growth or
change since the January! His next MRI will be scheduled for 6 months from now. We are all very excited about this news!
His doctor is going to proceed with a couple tests to determine if Bruce is having any seizures. We are still working on the
IEP which should hopefully be done very soon.

We are preparing for the 5K walk on May 5th. Our team is growing. Lil' Brucie's best friend Jared and cousins Troy,
Michael, Shelby and Madison are all participating in the walk. So far we have raised over $20k for the National Brain Tumor
Foundation. We are hoping that the money raised will assist in finding a kinder gentler treatment or a CURE for Brucie
when the time comes.

October 9, 2007

Just wanted to let all of you know that Lil’ Bruce had his MRI on Sunday and we received GREAT news! His Tumor is
stable!!! Our next MRI will be scheduled between 6 months to a year. We will find out exactly when at Bruce’s doctor’s
appointment in a couple weeks.   Lil’ Bruce is extremely excited about the results and hopes that a cure will be found soon!
It is very upsetting to him to know that each day 9 more kids are diagnosed with a brain tumor. His hope is that no more
children will have to suffer with brain tumors or cancer and that his brain tumor will go away forever…so we will continue
our fight for Lil’ Bruce and all The Mini Warriors!!!

February 3, 2008

If you are interested in joining our fight by participating in the Angel Adventure 5K Walk on May 3, 2008, please visit www.
firstgiving.com/theminiwarriors. If you would like to purchase a Mini Warriors T-Shirt, Sweatshirt, Bracelet, please visit
our Mini Store or contact me kristy@theminiwarriors.org !

Thanks to all of your prayers and well wishes!

Share our hope and help us cure kids brain tumors 4 Lil' Bruce and all The Mini Warriors!