Community Corner
Community Shows 'Overwhelming' Support for Eighth-Grader with Cancer
Nathaniel Fournel, 13, and his family say they are overwhelmed by the support they've received from the community since Nathaniel was diagnosed with a brain tumor.
Just 20 days ago Nathaniel Fournel’s parents heard news they thought they’d never have to hear.
“It’s not good,” the doctor told them as they sat in his office.
The results of their 13-year-old son’s MRI showed that he had a brain tumor. They didn’t know yet how big it was or what the treatment plan would be. They only knew one thing: they were terrified.
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“There’s nothing like the love that you have for your children,” Stephanie Fournel said. “But we made some promises to each other that we would trust in God’s plan.”
What followed were not only MRIs, blood tests, a surgery and chemo, but an outpouring of love and support from friends, family and strangers.
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“Neighbors, people we don’t know, people from out of state, people from Canada have been praying,” Stehpanie said. “We’re very thankful for this outpouring of support.”
The diagnosis
Just after Thanksgiving, Nathaniel’s dad, Daniel, took his son to the eye doctor because he noticed Nathaniel was having trouble moving his eyes upward.
When the doctor found swelling of the optic nerve, he recommended the 13-year-old see a neuro-opthamologist. That doctor scheduled an MRI for Nathaniel Nov. 29.
Daniel and Stephanie took their son for his MRI that day. After the MRI, Nathaniel wanted to go to his classes at Pleasant Hill Middle School, so they dropped him off.
Three and a half hours later, the doctor called Stephanie and Daniel back to his office for the results.
It was a tumor.
The couple rushed to the school to tell their son the bad news.
“When we told him, he just started crying in the parking lot,” Stephanie said. “He said, ‘I didn’t know it was that serious.’”
Doctors told Nathaniel he would have to come back the following week for a surgery to biopsy the tumor. The eighth-grader would also have to have a tube put in his head to drain the fluid caused by the tumor.
The weekend before the surgery, family and friends were showing their support already. A group of men that attend First Baptist Church with the Fournels came over to their house to pray with Nathaniel and the family.
They promised to shave their heads if Nathaniel started losing his hair during treatment.
12 days in the hospital
After a weekend at home, Nathaniel returned to the hospital Dec. 3 for his surgery.
A friend volunteered to keep Stephanie and Daniel’s younger son, 9-year-old Braden, during the surgery. She even kept her own son home from school that day so that Braden would have someone to play with.
“We didn’t have to worry about the emotions running through his head,” Stephanie said.
After the surgery, all Nathaniel and his parents could do was wait for the results of the biopsy.
“Everything was one day at a time, one foot in front of the other,” Daniel said. “We didn’t want to get ahead of ourselves until we got the pathology results back.”
Pathology results showed that the tumor was a germinoma. Although the results showed that the tumor was cancerous, doctors assured the Fournels that it was a very treatable type of tumor.
“When I heard that it was a germinoma,” Nathaniel said, “it was the best thing I could hear other than it not being there anymore.”
The 13-year-old started his first round of chemotherapy on Dec. 8. Another MRI showed the tumor had shrunk slightly after only the first round of chemo.
“Amazing,” Stephanie said about the news.
Nathaniel came home from the hospital on Friday. He’ll go back on Dec. 28 to start his second round of chemo. After four rounds of chemo, he’ll have to undergo radiation therapy.
Overwhelming support
During the family’s 12-day stay in the hospital, friends came over to clean their house. Family came over to decorate for Christmas. Other parents volunteered to take Braden to school and to swim practice.
“I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to say thank you to all the people who’ve helped us,” Stephanie said.
A group of people from Palmetto Aquatics, where both Nathaniel and Braden swim competitively, filled a freezer with meals for the family. Another friend brought the freezer over and set it up in the garage.
The man who always sells t-shirts at the boys’ swim meets heard about Nathaniel’s diagnosis and made t-shirts that say “Swim 4 Nathaniel.” He showed up with 200 of the shirts at the Palmetto Aquatics Christmas party.
Another family friend created a website, www.swim4nathaniel.com, where information about future fundraisers will be posted.
Nathaniel’s friends have also been supportive. Many of them shaved their heads, and even more have sent messages wishing him well.
Last weekend, when Nathaniel came home from the hospital, he, his dad and his brother shaved their heads as well.
“It’s overwhelming,” Nathaniel said. “You never realize how many people love you until something like this happens.”
How you can help
Leave messages on the Pray for Nathaniel Facebook page
Check swim4nathaniel.com for updates on fundraisers
Leave messages for Nathaniel and his family on their Caringbridge website. You can also read updates from the family on this site.
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