The Beginning
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Cody Meiers is a 16 year old, athletic, motivated, loving, incredible young man full of potential. He plays rec-league basketball and was hoping to try out for his high school team this year. He is a student at Palm Beach Central High where he maintained A's while taking Advanced Placement World History in the 10th grade. Now going into 11th, he wants to take AP European History and AP Psychology. He loves all types of music from Country to Hip-Hop, and is one of the biggest Pittsburgh Steelers fans you could ever imagine.
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Cody has recently been diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma, a bone cancer that is diagnosed less than 300 times annually in the US. The demographic of this disease is enough to test your belief in a benevolent god. It seems to target adolescent and young adult males with aggression. The symptoms and rarity of the disease means it is almost always misdiagnosed as a muscular/skeletal injury. This was the case for Cody.
Cody's ailment was originally diagnosed as a muscular/skeletal injury. Of course it was. He is a young, active and otherwise healthy young man. This was the most logical and probable diagnosis given the symptoms. It was far more likely to be a deep muscle bruise, strained joint, or stressed tendon. Thus, that is how it was treated... this is how it is almost always treated.
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The statistics of this rare disease overwhelmingly favor misdiagnosis in the beginning. Through the system of appointments and referrals time is lost and that is the tragic irony; that one of the most-often misdiagnosed diseases is also one of the most aggressive. There is no doubt that Cody and his family have a fight on their hands. We can help them win it!
Keep up with Cody here at CodysAngels.com, our News/Blog Page, the Cody's Angels Facebook Fan Page, or on our Twitter profile.