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Greg Mansbach Sr.

@gregm25

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Dad / Husband / Mariner ⚓️
Currently sharing our son Christian’s leukemia journey. 🎗️

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Christian Update 💙🎗️

After a week in the hospital starting his blinatumomab cycle, Sarah was finally able to bring Christian home today!

@bostonchildrens is truly amazing at what they do. But I have to say, the start of this treatment was a little scary for both Sarah and me. Watching what Christian was going through brought back a lot of the same fears and emotions we felt when we first heard his cancer diagnosis.

We’ve watched Christian go through so much over the past three months that I think we’ve almost become desensitized to some of it. But this cycle was different. The blina caused some pretty significant neurological side effects, including uncontrollable body tremors and episodes of confusion and disorientation. It was incredibly difficult to watch, especially being away at work while Sarah was there handling everything.

After careful observation and some changes in medication, including medications I never imagined a three-year-old would need, Christian’s tremors improved significantly. Thankfully, he was doing well enough to be discharged after a week and finally head home.

I can’t say enough about @cutiebearxoxo and everything she’s had to handle while I’ve been away. She’s been incredible through all of this.

A huge thank you to our families for helping with Gregory and being there to support Sarah and Christian while I couldn’t be home. It means more than you know.

And of course, thank you to the amazing doctors, nurses, CAs, and @childlifebch team at Boston Children’s for taking such good care of both Christian and Sarah. We’re so fortunate to have such an incredible team looking after him.

Another tough week behind us, and we’re just happy to have our little guy back home.

#ChristianStrong #cancer #home #ChildhoodCancerAwareness #LeukemiaAwareness by @gregm25

Halloween looks a little different for our family this year.

Christian has had a really tough start to his blinatumomab treatment. What started with fevers has turned into some scary neurological side effects, including disorientation, mood swings, and tremors.

Watching videos of him from out at sea has been heartbreaking, but Sarah is the one there witnessing it all firsthand. I can’t put into words how proud I am of her and everything she’s carrying right now.

Cancer has already taken so much from Christian. Now it’s taken away Halloween, trick-or-treating, and even the chance to enjoy the special things @bostonchildrens does for the kids because he simply hasn’t felt well enough.

Thankfully, after trying different medications to help calm the tremors, Christian was finally able to get some good rest today. We’re hoping things improve so he can continue this cycle of treatment.

We’re grateful Gregory gets to enjoy Halloween with his grandparents and cousins, but it’s heartbreaking knowing cancer is stealing pieces of his childhood too. Both of our boys deserve to just be kids.

One bright spot was a special Boo Bag from @beccas.braverycards. We received it a few weeks ago and saved it for this hospital stay. Thank you for bringing a little Halloween magic to Christian when he needed it most. These small acts of kindness mean so much to our family.

Hoping for better days ahead. Thank you to everyone who continues to support our family and keep Christian in their thoughts.

#fuckcancer👊 #childhoodcancerawareness #christian #halloween #cancer by @gregm25

Christian Update🎗️

Christian was admitted back to @bostonchildrens yesterday to begin his next phase of treatment, Blinatumomab. In a full-circle moment, he’s back in Room 630, the same room where this whole journey began nearly three months ago.

This cycle will be a little different. Christian will be fitted with a backpack containing a portable pump that delivers his medication continuously for the next few weeks. This treatment uses his own immune system to target leukemia cells. After some initial monitoring he’ll be heading back home.

With me back at work, @cutiebearxoxo has been carrying so much of the weight of all this. I couldn’t be prouder of Sarah and the way she’s handled everything. I know it hasn’t been easy, especially with me away.

We also want to thank everyone who helped us through Induction 1B. It was a difficult stretch for our family. We thought being home would make things easier, but honestly, I found myself missing the comfort and consistency of the hospital and the amazing nurses and care team at Children’s.

A special thank you to our neighbors who brought us meals twice a week. Having one less thing to worry about made a bigger difference than you know. And to everyone who bought a Christian Strong shirt, seeing so many people supporting Christian has been amazing.

Through it all, Christian continues to amaze us. This journey has been incredibly difficult and has strained nearly every part of our lives, but he’s handled everything better than we could have ever imagined. I can’t imagine how much harder this would be if he weren’t doing as well as he is.

#ChristianStrong #ChildhoodCancerAwareness #christian #PediatricCancer #cancer by @gregm25

A little fall fun before we head back into chemo tomorrow for the second half of Induction 1B. 🍂

We were still giving some meds at home, but it was really nice to have a few days without clinic and give Christian a little break from everything.

Back at it tomorrow at the @thejimmyfund / @danafarber 💛

#Christian #childhoodcancer #ChildhoodCancerAwareness #fall #halloween by @gregm25

Until last month, I didn’t even know September was Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

Childhood cancer was something I never wanted to think about. I’m sure I saw posts about it before, felt awful for those families and kept scrolling. Then in August, it became part of our life.

Sarah and I are learning about childhood cancer as we live it, and there is so much I had no idea about.

For years, less than 4% of the National Cancer Institute’s budget went toward childhood cancer research.

I didn’t know some drugs still used to treat childhood leukemia today were first approved in the 1950s and 1960s.

I didn’t know that the treatments that save these kids can also create lifelong health problems and increase their risk of developing another cancer later in life.

And I definitely didn’t understand how much kids and adults going through cancer treatment depend on blood and platelet donations. Platelets only last about five days, so the need for donors never really stops.

Christian has already needed blood during treatment. Seeing firsthand how much these patients rely on complete strangers donating has completely changed the way I look at it.

If you’re able to, donate blood or platelets. If you’re around Boston, you can donate through @bostonchildrens or the @kraftdonorcenter at @danafarber / @thejimmyfund

I never expected any of this to become part of our life, but it has. So if sharing what we’re learning gets one more person to donate blood, support research or just pay a little more attention to childhood cancer, that’s worth it to me. 🎗️

#ChildhoodCancerAwareness #GoGold #Cancer #DonateBlood #christian by @gregm25

Christian is officially done with his second week of outpatient chemo.

While we were preparing to lock ourselves in the house for this weekend’s nor’easter, we got a little change of plans. Christian’s hemoglobin is low, so tomorrow morning Momma will be heading into #Boston with him for a blood transfusion at the @thejimmyfund.

The funny thing is, with how low his hemoglobin is, he’s supposed to be tired and lethargic, but during the day you’d barely know it. He still got outside for a nice bike ride today before the first nor’easter of the year rolls in tomorrow.

And thank you so much to everyone who has bought a Christian Strong shirt from @spreadgoodshop. I continue to be amazed by the amount of support Christian and our family have received through all of this.

The shirts are still available for preorder if anyone would like one. All proceeds go toward Christian’s continued care and other childhood cancer-related causes. Link is in my bio. 💪💙

Hopefully the blood transfusion goes smoothly tomorrow and we’ll have a nice relaxing weekend at home.

#Christian #ChildhoodCancerAwareness #LeukemiaAwareness #Cancer by @gregm25

Christian met a lobster for the first time this week 😂😂😂 #cancer #lobsters #christian #jaws #seabeast by @gregm25

Today we got the news we’ve been waiting for: Christian’s cancer is officially in remission.

It’s something we’re incredibly happy and grateful for, but I’ll admit it didn’t feel quite the way I expected it to.

Remission is a huge step, but right now we’re also getting our first real taste of how hard the chemo can be on him. He’ll be completely himself one minute, then suddenly have a headache, get nauseous and throw up. Then it passes, and before long our goofy Christian is back again.

Those moments are probably the hardest part for Sarah and me. There are only so many things we can do to make him feel better, and watching your three-year-old feel miserable while knowing you can’t just fix it is an awful kind of helplessness as a parent.

There’s also a whole new routine at home. The VNA handles some of his chemo through his port, which saves us trips into Boston, but we’re still giving chemo at night, nausea medicine three times a day, and today we add Bactrim. We’ve been warned that Bactrim is brutally bitter and can be absolutely miserable to get into a three-year-old, so we’re not exactly looking forward to adding that one to the routine.

So while hearing the word “remission” means more to us than I can put into words, it also doesn’t mean Christian suddenly isn’t sick.

There is still a long road ahead of him.

But today, remission is a really big step in the right direction. ❤️

#ChildhoodCancerAwareness #cancer #christian #chemotherapy #Remission by @gregm25

First clinic week is complete at the @thejimmyfund / @danafarber

Christian got to see Dr. Holly, who was with him throughout his stay at Children’s, which made him really happy.

They accessed his port for the first time this week. It’s still a little tender, so there were definitely some tears, but if it’s anything like everything else he’s been through, I know it’ll get easier with time.

Today we went in for a lumbar puncture and bone marrow procedure, followed by the start of Induction 1B and about three hours of chemo. Now that the steroids are over, the NPO mornings have surprisingly gone really well.

Once Christian settled in, he came right out of his shell. It was definitely a big change of scenery from being inpatient at Children’s, but he had a really good day. He even got a visit from Opry, the little therapy dog, which made him extra happy.

The hardest part of clinic so far might honestly be the ride in and out. We drove into Boston during rush hour, spent about seven hours at clinic, and then got to drive right back home in rush hour again two days in a row. Somehow, three hours in the car felt more stressful than seven hours in clinic. Fortunately we’ll have VNAs coming to the house for much of the chemo in addition to the meds we have to give at home.

But week one is done, Induction 1B is underway, and Christian handled it like a champ.

#ChildhoodCancerAwareness #cancer #LeukemiaAwareness #GoGold #christian by @gregm25

It was a really good first weekend home, and our first one without Christian’s PICC line. ❤️

He definitely felt the effects of his little surgery, waking up in pain the first couple of nights, but he’s doing better every day. He’s also getting really good at taking his meds. It’s one of those things we’re happy about, but at the same time it sucks that a three-year-old has had to get so good at it.

Friday night, Christian got a bunch of cards from his friends at @lutheranpreschoolhanover. In a normal year, he would have been starting back at Pre-K this week. Instead, we made coffee and played with his Cozy Coupe as much as we possibly could before going to watch Gregory’s first soccer game of the fall.

Sunday was a warm, rainy day and Christian was more than happy to get outside and play in the rain.

Today, Sarah and I took him on our first real outing to @visitislandcreek. He was so happy just to be out of the house, and we made it back in time to be there when Gregory got off the bus.

After about four weeks of mostly getting around in a stroller, Christian is slowly getting his legs back under him.

Tomorrow, we head into our first clinic day @thejimmyfund

#ChildhoodCancerAwareness #cancer #friends #GoGold #christian by @gregm25

💛 NEW MERCH LAUNCH — CHRISTIAN STRONG 💛

Small kid. Big fight. Big heart. 🎗️

Christian, a sweet 3-year-old fighting B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. After more than a month at Boston Children’s Hospital, he’s finally home and continuing treatment as an outpatient. Through it all, Christian remains the happy, goofy little kid everyone knows and loves. 💛

These merch were created to show Christian just how many people are standing behind him.

👕 Adult & Youth Tees
🧥 Adult & Youth Crewnecks
💛 Adult & Youth Hoodies
👕 Long Sleeve Styles

Proceeds benefit Christian and his family throughout his treatment.

📅 Pre-order: September 14–28

Every purchase and share helps remind Christian that he’s never fighting alone. 🫶

Small kid. BIG fight. 💛

#LeukemiaAwareness #CancerWarrior #SupportChristian #NoOneFightsAlone #SpreadGoodShop by @gregm25

I can’t believe how well this boy handled not going outside for 5 weeks. So what if it’s raining…. by @gregm25