On the day before his 3rd birthday, Yano was diagnosed with Stage IV neuroblastoma, a rare but deadly cancer of the nervous system.  With a large tumor compressing his spine and threatening to paralyze him, we were faced with the realization that our son might never walk again or live to see his 4th birthday.  Yano had surgery to remove the main tumor on his spine, 8 months of chemotherapy, a stem cell transplant, 12 rounds of radiation therapy, and Ch14.18 antibody therapy.  He then had 3 months of accutane therapy and major surgery to remove a lymph node in his abdominal aorta.  In September 2010, we were told that Yano was officially in remission!
 
Our little hero has not complained or even asked why he went through this.  He just took it all in stride and still says "I love you daddy."  He is my life, my little best friend, and I pray to God that he spares his life as well as all the other little heroes battling these illnesses.  His amazing spirit and contagious personality has taught me more than I could ever teach my child in a lifetime.
 
Yano is a blessing to be around and has quite the personality as all kids do.  He is in the 2nd grade and will be 8 years old this May.  He is still being tested 2 times a year, and is still NED (no evidence of disease) and in remission.  We pray that continues!  
 
Yano’s CaringBridge page: www.caringbridge.org/visit/yano
 
Written by Dr. Vasilios Pournaras, Yano’s Father
Updated: March 2014