In early July, Andrew started complaining about a sore back at bedtime. He got back rubs, which seemed to help. On 7/15/18, Andrew was brought to the emergency room for what his parents thought was constipation due to antibiotics for a tick bite. He was treated and sent home. That week, he continued to have severe back pain and a lot of trouble sleeping. On 7/20/18, he went back to the ER. The doctors still thought it was constipation from the antibiotics, treated him, am sent him home. He was hunched over that day, but his parents attributed it to lack of sleep and a tummy ache. The next morning (7/21/18), he was unsteady on his feet in the morning. By the afternoon, he could not walk without holding on to furniture. Mary and Nate brought him to Children’s Hospital in St. Paul. That day, he was again evaluated and treated for constipation with no change in his severe back pain or ambulation. Mary and Nate were adamant something more was happening and he was admitted to the hospital for observation. By Sunday morning, he could not stand or walk. A team of pediatric specialists were called in and testing began. An MRI showed a mass in his thoracic spine, compressing his spinal cord, causing pain and inability to walk. The pediatric neurologist decided he could not wait to do the surgery and Andrew was brought in for emergency spinal surgery overnight on Sunday. The neurosurgeon was able to remove the mass around his spine, hopefully relieving the pressure on the spinal cord. There was some tumor in the bone that could not be removed. Time will tell how much of his mobility he will regain and what the pathology results will show. In the meantime, Andrew is being one brave, strong, boy. Andrew was diagnosed with Stage 4 Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma.
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