Boy battling rare brain tumor gets birthday wish for mail
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The family of a brave Massachusetts boy getting ready to turn six is asking for their community's help in celebrating by sending him a massive amount of birthday cards.
"Danny turns 6 in 24 days," Carley Nickerson posted July 1 on a Facebook page chronicling her son's battle against a rare brain tumor. "He loves receiving mail and he’s always checking the mail box for mail with his name on it. How many birthday cards can we get before his birthday? And give him a month tons of mail! He will love it!" the post on Danny’s Warriors page read.
Danny, whose birthday is July 25, was diagnosed last October with an inoperable brain tumor called Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glimoa, according to the family’s blog. Doctors told the family that there is no known cure, and that surgery was not an option because the tumor affects the part of the brain stem which controls the 12 main nerves of the body.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Daniel began undergoing treatments of chemotherapy and radiation, and while the tumor is considered one of more resistant forms of cancer, the Nickerson family remains hopeful.
"Danny's birthday means so much to us this year," Carley told The Foxboro Reporter. The news site reports less than 10 percent of children with DIPG live longer than 18 months after the diagnosis. "Every day is a blessing to us," she said.
The family, which includes dad Daniel Jamieson and 4-year-old brother Matthew, has set up a PO box for the influx of mail and plan to open it closer to Danny's birthday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Carley posted on the Facebook page that Danny's "eyes lit up" when he saw how much mail had already come in.
Click here for more information on how to send Danny a birthday card.