"Backing Dalton All The Way"

By Sydney Holder Riverbend News

Dalton Izell is a four-year-old boy from Jasper who has been diagnosed with Diffused Widespread Anaplastic Wilms' Tumor, a rare and aggressive form of cancer. Dalton's family and friends have coined the phrase, "Backing Dalton All the Way" and have begun multiple fundraiser projects to support Dalton's battle with cancer.

The story begins on Wednesday, May 12, when Dalton was initially taken to the hospital by his mother and father, Lisa and Jason Izell. A few hours later, the doctors discovered a mass on Dalton's kidney and later confirmed that the tumor was cancerous.

"The doctors told me that if I hadn't have gotten him to the hospital, he wouldn't have made it to August," Lisa said. "This cancer is so aggressive and rare that you don't have any signs for it. It just eats and eats and eats so fast. The only signs you might have is a slight fever here and there, a little tiredness and maybe slacking off on eating."

Dalton underwent surgery to remove his kidney with the tumor and place a port for his chemotherapy on Friday, May 14. He was discharged from the hospital and was able to go home six days later on Thursday, May 20.

In the next few days, Lisa and Jason received the results for Dalton's test, in which they discovered the severity of Dalton's condition. Only three percent of children with Wilms' Tumor are diagnosed with the Diffused Widespread Anaplastic form. The doctors also revealed that due to incisions in the excised tumor, cancerous platelets leaked into Dalton's system, allowing the cancer to metastasize to his lymph nodes.

Dalton and his family are now involved in clinical trials; the excised tumor and kidney are being studied by different hospitals, such as Shands and Saint Jude, in order to shine awareness on the rare cancer and teach families precautionary steps.

"My child wasn't sick before this at all," Lisa said. "He went to his doctor check-ups once a year and he was a very healthy child. So, I guess him not going to the doctor and getting check-ups more regularly, he was able to slip through the cracks. So sometimes, even if your child is healthy, it's still good to get your child checked because the doctors told me this cancer had been there for a while. They told me it had been the biggest tumor they've ever taken out of a child his age."

On Friday, May 28, Lisa and Jason took Dalton to his first infusion appointment, where they discovered the extent of Dalton's future treatment and care. Dalton will have to have multiple types of chemotherapy and is likely to experience potential short and long term side effects, including bladder and kidney damage, nervous system damage, permanent hearing loss, leukemia, sores in the mouth and GI tract and infections. The doctors also explained that Dalton may need multiple bone marrow transplants and blood transfusions.

Dalton began his chemotherapy and radiation treatments on Tuesday, June 1. He went in for his second chemotherapy session on Wednesday, June 9 and a body mold for radiation on Thursday, June 10.

"So far everything has been going good with his chemotherapy," Lisa said. "He hasn't had any side effects. Every time we do a piece of chemo, I always ask if everything is going as planned."

Dalton had his first blood transfusion on Wednesday, June 16 and his first radiation treatments will begin in the second week of July.

"Everybody's helping as much as they can," Lisa said. "Their prayers, love and concerns are the most important thing. We don't just ask for money, we only ask for people to pray for him through this long road. A 42 week treatment of chemotherapy and radiation. Just a couple months shy of a year, that this child's life drastically took a 360 change."

Dalton's story has touched the lives of many and proves that a loving community can come together for a great cause.