Parker Kress, a freshman at Pleasant Valley, was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma at 13 years old. Since then, he has been fighting a battle that not a lot of people could imagine. Kress started his chemotherapy in December of 2014 and was receiving six different drugs all at once. On April 3, 2015, he had surgery to remove what was left of the tumor, which he called Leonardo. A large part of his tibia had to be replaced with cadaver bone, which caused Kress to go through seven different casts during this time and walk mostly on crutches. Kress ended his chemotherapy in Dec. of 2015, about a year after he had begun it. Things were looking good for Parker.
In summer of 2016, Kress developed an infection in his leg and fought the infection for weeks. Ultimately it was decided that Kress would have to have an amputation of his leg, to save his life from the spreading infection. The surgery was scheduled for Oct. 25, 2016, and the student body of Pleasant Valley was extremely supportive towards Kress and his family as the date got closer. A week before Kress’s scheduled surgery, he went back in for scans to find that the infection was gone, and he was going to keep his leg.
In February, Kress went back for more scans on his leg to find that the cancer had returned, ultimately meaning that Kress would have to have his leg amputated. He was incredibly positive and making the best of his situation. “I’m nervous but making the best of the situation,” said Kress.
On Tuesday, March 28, Kress had his leg amputated above the knee joint. “This is said to be, better for him in the long run, and the surgeons did not have to cut through any bone which is better for weight bearing,” said Kristin, Kress’s mother.
“When I saw him after surgery in recovery, he was laughing and making jokes about wiggling his toes,” said Kristin, “Thank you all for the support! It means the world to us!”
