The 1 Year Anniversary of Theofanis' Diagnosis

One year ago today, our warrior Theofanis was diagnosed with a rare childhood cancer called Neuroblastoma.

And today, Eleni and Kosta are re-living every moment that happened on May 4, 2011. Every tear and every fear is burning brightly in their minds.

While thinking back to everything that Theofanis has gone through...the biopsy, the scans, the chemo, the nausea, the fevers, the baldness, the stem cell harvest, the pain, the surgery, the tubes, the infusions, the morphine, the fear, the vomit, the sleeplessness, the transplant, the second transplant, the mucositis, the isolation, the separation, the processed food, the loss of taste and appetite, the nail loss, the dry skin, the exhaustion, the radiation, the clinic visits, the dressing changes, the overdose, the counting, the fear, the confusion, the antibodies, the IL-2, the accutane, the shots, the hallucinations, the brain swelling, the neuropathy, and the WHY???????????  While thinking back to everything that this child has fought against and fought for, it's ended up been a very difficult day. And when reminded of everything that Demetra and Sophia have also gone through, witnessed and lived themselves, the day was becoming more difficult with every passing moment.

But Eleni and Kosta are trying very hard today to instead focus on all the blessings and miracles that God has given them. Firstly, Theofanis is in remission, which is the greatest blessing of all! Their home is filled with love for each other, and they have been surrounded by the most wonderful and loving family, friends, church, schools, neighbors, community, co-workers and even strangers who have given them strength and support through their actions, words and endless prayers. People from all over the world have given them strength and encouragement. The cards, the posters, the letters, the scrapbooks, the lemonade stands, the shaving events, the hair cuts, the fundraisers, the 1000 cranes, the gifts, the toys, the Courage Beads, the blog comments, the hugs, the phone calls, the donations, the acts of incredible human kindness that have been displayed in Theofanis' honor and the baby that they are expecing in August...these are all blessings that have had a huge impact on how the Yianas family was able to get through this past year.

While today, May 4th, is a day that has and will forever bring back emotional memories for Eleni and Kosta, it ended up being a very nice day for Theofanis, Demetra and Sophia. The three Yianas kids did not realize nor even know that today is any kind of anniversary. (And Eleni and Kosta prefer to keep it that way.) Today, all three kids were at Pythagoras at Saint Demetrios, and today, Theofanis received 1st place in the Science Fair!  He presented his project on Heat and Evaporation, and was extremely happy and proud of his award!

We are so proud of you, Theofanis, our brave son!
There are so many people throughout this world
who are so incredibly proud of you!