This is the cancer that sickened the son of John Poulos and that earned him a visit to the United States Congress

One of the details that came to light after the case of the femicide of DJ Valentina Trespalacios became known is that the son of John Poulos, the woman’s reported murderer, had had a serious illness that earned him great visibility in the United States. .

The minor was just four years old when he was diagnosed with a rare type of cancer, known as rhabdomyosarcoma, which was also at a fairly advanced stage.

It was in 2016 when Poulos and the mother of his son received the diagnosis and, to guarantee his treatment, they started a campaign that sought to raise funds.

To begin with, they asked for help from the organization Victory of the Lamb, an American Lutheran church. They also turned to other organizations, such as Gamerosity, which is described as “a unique platform that allows communities to raise tax-deductible funds to provide enriching experiences for children with cancer.”

But Poulos and his wife at the time insisted on seeking more funds to guarantee the treatment of their young son, for which in 2017 they launched a GoFundMe campaign. This website allows people to collect money for different causes, such as paying for the medical expenses of a family member who suffers from a high-cost disease.

In the entry to the website, which is no longer available, the mother of the minor said that they initially thought that the child’s stomach ache was a mild stomach disease or a parasite, but then they received the news that it was an extremely rare type of cancer, of which only 350 cases had been reported in the entire United States.

During entry, The boy’s mother noted that he “has been a great fighter so far, and we are sure that, like everything he has done, he will give every ounce of energy and strength he has to this battle. We know that God has a plan. Although we still don’t understand what it is, we trust that He will help us through this.”

Fortunately, the boy was able to access the appropriate treatments that allowed him to overcome his cancer and improve his state of health.

The incredible thing about the case of Poulos’s son is that his case became so well known that in 2018 it was received by the former speaker of the United States House of Representatives.

“He is a fighter who beat a very rare form of cancer. Now he has received a clear scan and I am happy to have him as my guest,” Ryan wrote via his official Twitter account.

How is the cancer that affected the son of Poulos?

Rhabdomyosarcoma is, in effect, a type of cancer that occurs in boys and girls. It is a sarcoma, that is, a cancer that develops in the soft tissues.

According to the US National Cancer Institute, “rhabdomyosarcoma usually starts in the muscles that attach to bone and help move the body, but it can appear in many parts of the body.”

In addition, from that entity they point out that rhabdomyosarcoma is the most frequent type of soft tissue sarcoma among children.

This rhabdomyosarcoma, in turn, can present in four forms: embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma, which occurs in the head, neck, or genital organs; the alveolar that occurs in the legs, arms or in the anal area; spindle cell type, which is characterized by being more aggressive and can also occur on the head and neck; and the pleomorphic, which is characterized by having different shapes and being uncommon among children.

Generally, notes the US National Cancer Institute, This type of cancer occurs in a mass that begins to increase in size over the days.

Among the most common symptoms they cite the following:

• The appearance of a lump or inflammation that grows more and more or does not go away and that sometimes hurts.
• Crossed or bulging eyes.
• Headache.
• Trouble urinating or having a bowel movement.
• Present blood in the urine.
• Having bleeding from the nose, throat, vagina, or rectum.