Cancer foundation's outings make patient's life less stressful
SHELLY LEACHMAN, NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER
December 2, 2005 1:00 AM
Art supplies spread out on the table in front of him, Sergio Fuentes, 12, is working on a project -- cutting stenciled handprints from green construction paper that he'll use to make a Christmas tree. The IV cart at his side is evidence of a different project altogether.
Sergio has been fighting cancer for four years. Diagnosed with leukemia at age 7, he's in the midst of his second round of treatment after relapsing near the end of his first. Besides taking daily medications and weekly blood tests at home, the Santa Paula sixth-grader travels with mom Diane, 45, to Santa Barbara at least twice a month for daylong chemotherapy sessions at Cottage Hospital.
That's where the Fuenteses learned of the Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation, which offers financial aid and moral support to families of cancer patients at Cottage.
One of two charities named as recipients of the annual News-Press Holiday Fund, the foundation provides grants to approved families for rent or mortgage payments, car payments or vehicle maintenance costs and utility bills. It also offers financial planning advice, support groups, care packages for patients' families and hotel accommodations. It often hosts social events for cancer-stricken families.
Ms. Fuentes said a recent grant to her family helped offset some bills that were tough to pay after spending $2,000 to launch a donor search for Sergio, who needs a bone marrow transplant. But for her son, the group's social events have been an even bigger boon, Ms. Fuentes said. He has attended everything from picnics to parties to Los Angeles Dodgers and Angels games, all at the behest of TBCF.
"It just makes (the kids) feel very special," Ms. Fuentes said of such outings. "It's hard to get a disease, but they make it easier, less stressful. I think this foundation made up for some of the things (Sergio) missed."
Sergio lost two years of schooling because of leukemia. The cancer carries a high risk of infection, often requiring patients to be isolated from places like schools where germs float freely. Ms. Fuentes said he's now back in class and loving it, and in fact a grin spreads across Sergio's face when his mom mentions school.
Dressed in dark sweat pants and an oversized T-shirt, Sergio smiles sheepishly when questioned by a stranger, dipping his head to his chest and waiting for his mom to answer for him. But she says her boy is not shy; in fact, he's known to nurses as a practical joker.
And from the sly looks and frequent giggles that mother and son exchange, it's obvious to even a casual observer that good-natured ribbing is part of the Sergio-and-Diane dynamic.
"At first it was hard to be positive, which made it even harder," said Ms. Fuentes. "If Sergio saw me being non-positive, it would just make him worse. But if I started joking around or making him laugh, I'd see him pull out of it more, fight harder."
The fight is paying off -- Sergio is in remission. He still requires a bone marrow transplant but has yet to find a donor. Precious few Latinos are in the National Bone Marrow Registry, said Ms. Fuentes, who lamented two matches that turned up -- and later fell through -- in a search by Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA.
The family is now looking for a cord-blood match through City of Hope Cancer Center near Los Angeles .
sleachman@newspress.com