A Yankee Fan in Philly

In 2009, Audrey Thompson and her husband made a big decision; after 37 years of living in the Bronx, NY, they planned to move with their three children nearly 200 miles away to Norristown, PA, to be closer to Audrey’s ailing father. They made the move in August 2009, but without Audrey’s husband Dwayne, who still spent the work week in New York City for his job with the city. After registering her children – Jacob, 16, Jiana, 14, and Joshua, 19 – for their new school, Audrey took them for the requisite medical checkups. Upon checking Jacob, the Thompsons’ new doctor expressed concern about a gland near his chest. Always thought to be a normal fatty gland, this particular gland had hardened – and the Thompsons were sent to the Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania (CHOP) for further examination. In November, Jacob underwent a barrage of tests and scans, which ultimately led to a biopsy. At the end of December, the Thompsons received the news: Jacob had Stage 4A Hodgkins Lymphoma throughout his spleen, hips, lower spine, and left chest. Because Jacob’s lymph nodes were affected, removing the cancer was not an option; instead, he began an aggressive schedule of chemotherapy and radiation to treat the disease.

In January 2010, Jacob had a central line port surgically implanted to allow his frequent chemotherapy treatments to be distributed throughout his body; he began the chemo immediately following the surgery. Audrey, who had started a new job only a few months earlier, took a leave of absence to be with her son during the grueling treatments. And as the primary source of income for the family, Audrey’s husband had no choice but to remain in New York City for work. This not only meant that Dwayne couldn’t be close to his son during the treatment period, but also that he couldn’t help Audrey with the day-to-day needs of caring for Jacob, as well as their other children. Soon, the bills started to pile up – from the monthly rent, to the gas and parking Audrey needed for the frequent trips with Jacob to the hospital.

“There were days where we weren’t sure we’d have enough money to get a snack in the hospital cafeteria,” explained Audrey. “Our everyday expenses were becoming overwhelming. Being so new to the area, we didn’t have enough of a history with our landlord or any of our local service providers to be able to negotiate any alternatives.”

Audrey soon asked a social worker at CHOP if there were any programs available for financial support, and was introduced to the Family Reach Foundation. Family Reach moved quickly, immediately covering Audrey’s rent for the next two months.

“They just came right in and helped – no questions asked,” said Audrey. “Family Reach took the financial stress completely off our minds so we could focus on what was most important: getting Jacob healthy.”

In March, Jacob ended his regimen of chemotherapy, and started on radiation the next month. Always the optimist, he dealt with his time in the hospital with humor and maturity. A lifelong Yankee fan, Jacob joked good-naturedly with the staff at CHOP, all of them die-hard supporters of the local Phillies team.

By June, Jacob was declared to be in remission from his disease. His central line port was removed, and he was put on antibiotics to prevent any infections that his weakened spleen can no longer fight. Jacob also began weekly physical and occupational therapy to address nerve damage caused by the cancer medications, a common side effect known as neuropathy. Because he had such high dosages of chemotherapy and radiation in such a short period of time, Jacob will continue to be checked every three months for secondary cancers or other possible illnesses.

With his 17th birthday approaching, Jacob will begin his senior year of high school in September. Though Dwayne remains in NYC in order to better provide for the family, and Audrey is in Pennsylvania to be with the children and her father, they are as tight-knit as ever – and forever grateful for the continued support they receive from their friends and family, the staff at CHOP, and the Family Reach Foundation.