Welcome to our CaringBridge website for Brent. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting, and please sign up to Follow our site if you would like to receive notifications when updates are made.
Here's a little summary of how Brent's recent story began.
On Wednesday, 8/14/19, Brent drove from his apartment in Chicago to his mom's house to help pack up Maddy, Ryan and Josh to move them for school at Illinois State University in Bloomington, IL. Nancy, his mom, immediately knew he wasn't behaving like his normal self. Brent, usually the guy who would never hesitate to use his muscle to help his mom and siblings, did not have the energy to assist much at all. He had no appetite and seemed to have lost weight since his mom last saw him a few weeks earlier. Brent explained his IT bands and hips had been hurting, but he had already seen a doctor who prescribed steroids to reduce inflammation and he also was seeing a physical therapist for help.
The next morning, Nancy decided to bring Brent to the ER at Edward Hospital in Naperville, since she had a feeling something more serious could be wrong. The doctors in the ER performed blood tests, a CT scan and MRI and determined Brent must have some type of lymphoma. He was transferred to Loyola University Medical Center on Saturday, 8/17/19.
Further testing at Loyola revealed that Brent has been diagnosed with Burkitt Lymphoma, a highly aggressive, B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The doctors are treating his condition very aggressively. He has been experiencing tumor lysis syndrome, which began spontaneously prior to receiving chemotherapy, which results when tumor cells release their contents into the blood stream. For this reason, he will be continuously monitored in the hospital while receiving chemotherapy treatment until the risk has been minimized. While most of his chemotherapy treatment in administered through a port in his arm, part of the treatment is administered through injection into his spinal fluid, in order to help protect his central nervous system.
You know Brent as a fun, strong, family-oriented, wicked smart guy. He amazes us with his physical skills like he did on the basketball team at Grinnell College. He's committed to continuing his budding career at Wintrust Financial Corporation. He enjoyed moving into the city and wants to get back to hanging out with his close friends there. He loves his family and loves staying connected with each and every one, especially his mom. He's working hard to getting back to all these priceless elements of his life - and we believe in our hearts that he's going to do it.
We will continue to update you, Brent's friends and family, with more information as his treatment continues. Please feel free to show Brent your love and support any way you can, including through posting encouraging comments to this site -- we will ensure he sees them all.
With an incredible amount of hope and love, Brent's family
To put it mildly, it’s been an up and down few days and weeks (and months) for Brent. Whenever one issue seems to be at least partly resolved, another issue arises, and the challenge is weighing on Brent. He has a high lactic acid count, which is disconcerting, and walking is difficult. He’s dealing with paralysis on the left side of his face, which has affected his vision, his speech and his swallowing. It’s just been an onslaught of bad news recently. He’s in the hospital today, and he’s having trouble staying positive amidst everything, including the loneliness of not being able to receive visitors due to the coronavirus.
Now, more than ever, please keep thinking of Brent. He’s been able to stay so positive for so long, but without much good news of late, he needs our help to lift him with our positivity. Keep thinking of him, and send him a text to help lift his spirits.
This message was written by Hayes Gardner, Grinnell Basketball #Biz - teammate and friend.
Patients and caregivers love hearing from you; add a comment to show your support.
Help Brent Stay Connected to Family and Friends
A $25 donation to CaringBridge powers a site like Brent's for two weeks. Will you make a gift to help ensure that this site stays online for them and for you?
