Visit the Giant Supermarket locations here:

• Greenbelt Location: 6000 Greenbelt Road, Greenbelt MD

Photography by Michelle Purdue.

Meet Carson, a 7 year old ovarian cancer warrior.

After having a week-long fever, Carson’s stomach became hard to the touch. Doctors discovered the tumor and the next morning Carson went in for surgery to remove the tumor and her ovary. Kristi and Clayton, Carson’s parents, were devastated and terrified for their daughter.

The surgery required doctors to make a very large incision. As a result, Carson had to be on an epidural for three days and many pain medications. Following her port placement surgery, Carson was very sick. To make matters worse, she started her first chemotherapy treatment. Carson had a severe allergic reaction to the chemotherapy but she powered through.

Photography by Michelle Purdue.

In total, Carson endured three rounds of chemo over four days inpatient. In February 2022, Carson was declared NED. She will continue monthly blood draws and quarterly CT scans to ensure her cancer stays in remission.

Carson is featured as an ambassador for ACCO’s GO GOLD® the RUN. Run for kids like Carson by clicking here.

Together, we can make a difference. Donate today, “because kids can’t fight cancer alone!®”

Meet Lewis, a Non-Rhabdomyosarcoma CIC-DUX4 warrior.

The day before diagnosis, Lewis’ mother, Dynae had just given birth and was in the hospital recovering. Her husband, LT had noticed a quarter sized lump on the mid-inner thigh of Lewis’ leg. Lewis had informed his dad that it itched, rather than hurt. Lewis was taken to the emergency room after suspecting it was a severe reaction to a bug or spider bite. The ER reassured the parents that it was nothing after cutting into the mass and nothing coming out.

Call it mothers intuition, but Dynae did not agree with the abscess diagnosis. Lewis’ pediatrician immediately got him in to see a pediatric surgeon. The surgeon agreed that the lump needed to be removed and sent to pathology. Surgery was delayed two weeks after Lewis tested positive for Covid, despite showing no symptoms. On July 14, 2020, the pathology revealed an unknown type of sarcoma. On July 16, the family met with the oncologist for the first time. Lewis’ tumor was genetically tested to determine what type of sarcoma was present. At the time, they thought it was Ewing’s sarcoma. Lewis was scheduled for scans and a port was placed. “When the surgeon told us it was a sarcoma and that oncology would tell us more, it sounded like the mom in Peanuts. Nothing got through my brain. It was very much a blur” remembers Dynae.

On August 12, 2020, Lewis was diagnosed with Non-Rhabdomyosarcoma CIC-DUX4, a very rare type of sarcoma. There is no specific treatment for this particular type, so Lewis was treated with a modified aggressive Ewing’s sarcoma treatment.

Treatment started 7 days later on August 19. After his first chemotherapy treatment, he began losing his hair. He lost his appetite and was very sick following his first chemo. Other side effects like neutropenic fevers landed him in the hospital for a few days. In December 2020, Lewis had a surgery to remove four places. Of the four, only one was a chemotherapy resistant active tumor. In May of 2021, Lewis started radiation and only had minimal redness at the site. He liked the radiation machine. After treatment scans have shown no new tumors so far despite the high recurrence rate of his cancer.

During Lewis’ chemotherapy treatment, his parents noticed a change in his behavior. From withholding stool to attitude changes, they knew he was just not acting like himself. After seeing a psychologist, psychiatrist and behavioral health specialist, it was found that Lewis was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder Level 1, formerly Asperger’s). Doctors believed that the neurotoxicity in one of the chemotherapy drugs had exacerbated a previous mild case of ASD Level 1.

Currently, Lewis is doing well and continues to have post treatment scans.

During your child’s journey, it can be difficult to keep your community updated, especially between multiple doctors appointments and treatments. Apps like GoFundMe and other various sites can help by simply sharing a website and following along.

Take a look at the following links to help spread the word on your child’s journey today:

• Post Hope: This site provides users tools to create their own website to update friends and family about status. You can upload photos and other relevant information which can all be shared to social media. Community members can show support by adding posts, reading a journal entry, view important dates on the calendar and give a donation directly to the family.

• Give Forward/GoFundMe: Tell your story and add pictures/videos that can be shared with family and friends. Collect donations and thank your community.

• Lotsa Helping Hands: This site not only organizes a care calendar (for rides, meal delivery and appointments), but also takes comments (like well wishes) and includes a photo gallery. This platform focuses solely on coordination, communication and support from the community. More than 2.1 million meals have been delivered and 822K child care shifts have been covered as a result of this site.

• Caring Bridge:  This all in one platform has many different features including personalized to-do lists, custom care plans and a calendar. Other features include a medication list, document storage, wellness journal, preparedness checklists and secure messaging to all village members.

In addition to the online resources listed above, make sure to register for ACCO’s free resources. Our book “Along the Way,” helps document the journey and keep all of your important documents in one place.