Thank you for taking the time to visit this page in honor of Jake. The Conde family is extremely grateful for each and every one of you. The saying " It takes a village" is definitely true in this situation. How does a family properly thank someone for the things that they have done to help out during difficult times? You need to know how much all the prior well wishes, positive thoughts, prayers, donations, helping with meals, helping out with Lucas, gifts for Jake, time spent together, and friendship has meant to the Conde family - THANK YOU!
Here we go again... Where do I even begin? Honestly, it's really difficult to gather thoughts, considering so much has gone on the past 77 weeks. As most of you know, Jake was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma in his left femur bone in April of 2015, when he was 9 years old. To keep it short, it was a very long year with many nights in the hospital, multiple biopsies, surgeries, chemo, lab/diagnostic testing, physical therapy etc. It was a nightmare, but they got through it - or so they thought. Shortly after his year long cancer treatment ended, Jake started having pain in his shoulder and losing weight, so they took him in for testing. Then came the devastating news, which was even worse than the first time around. Not only was his cancer back, they were told that Jake had 6 metastatic tumors. Cancer sucks! Sarcoma sucks!
Many of you have emailed or left messages for Steph, Roger, and myself asking what you can do to help. First and foremost, for those of you who pray, please keep Jake in your daily prayers. Jake has a birthday coming up, he turns 11 on October 22nd. If you would like to send him a card or write him a note, you can mail it directly to his home, or contact me (my number is below) for more information. For those of you who would like to make a small donation, that would be great too. I know that they are spending thousands of dollars out of pocket each month.
Currently Jake has had five in-patient chemo treatments (each 5 days long), and goes back in on Monday 10/17 for his sixth treatment. A recent scan showed only 2 of his 6 tumors as active - this is good news! The current plan is to give Jake 18 months of chemo - that's the bad news! The chemo is taking a toll on him, the drugs are very hard on your body, it's been tough!
In addition to chemo, the Conde family strongly believes in an alternative and holistic approach this time around; they believe that the chemo alone will not cure their son. Jake is eating all organic and non-gmo foods, using essential oils, cannabis oil, juicing, drinking alkaline water & special teas, taking supplements... You name it, they're doing it!
What the Conde family is going through is impossible to comprehend. We've watched Jake go from being such a happy, funny, spirited child who was so full of life, to fighting for his life. What are the days during chemo and just after chemo like for them now? At times Jake is screaming/crying in pain, has anxiety/fear of upcoming procedures/testing, vomits throughout the day, spends most of the day on the couch or in bed with no energy, is up sick most of the night, feels depressed, angry, and lonely at times. It stinks! It's really tough to see him/them go through this! Roger and Steph are up around the clock caring for Jake, it's 24/7! But, they continue to stay strong, believe in miracles, and have hope! Losing is not an option!
During Jake's first year of treatment Jake watched a lot of Adam Sandler movies in the hospital, Stephanie and Roger expressed how those movies helped them get through the awful hospital stays. Laughter soothes the soul! If you have any really good funny movie suggestions that are appropriate for an 11 year old, please make suggestions.
The best therapy for Jake and family right now is for them to get out of the house (when Jake is feeling well), or to have company; they love to be around friends and family every chance they get. Even if it's for a short time. Don't be afraid to reach out!
We are all thankful for every minute, hour or glimpse of happiness that Jake feels. When he smiles, we all smile!
Thank you for your concern and continued support.
Video Links below:
UCLA Video: https://www.uclahealth.org/Mattel/jacob-conde
Let the good times roll video... https://youtu.be/oZ6ObJB04zY
For more information on Ewing's Sarcoma click the following links:
http://www.webmd.com/cancer/ewings-sarcoma
Angie
(310) 704-1447
