CAYDEN'S ITP JOURNEY
Hi, my name is Brooklyn, I will be a senior in high school this year and my little brother Cayden has ITP. I wanted to do something special in honor of my brother and his fight with this disease called ITP. Through my school I was able to find an opportunity to do so as part of my senior project.
Here is Cayden's story:
Cayden was diagnosed with ITP in March of 2015 at the age of 4. Cayden had been sick over several months with what seemed to be multiple winter colds/sore throats/flu. Multiple trips to the doctor thinking he was just getting virus after virus with little recovery time in between. In the early first weeks of March, Cayden began getting strange bruises/marks all over his face and body. Knowing something was not right my parents took him back to the doctor right away. 
That day the doctor sent Cayden immediately for blood testing. Later that evening my parents received a call from the doctor that they needed to get Cayden to Children's Hospital immediately. A normal platelet count is between 150,000-500,000. Cayden's count was below 9,000. After weeks of constant blood tests ruling out any other diseases/causes, Cayden was diagnosed with ITP.
That day the doctor sent Cayden immediately for blood testing. Later that evening my parents received a call from the doctor that they needed to get Cayden to Children's Hospital immediately. A normal platelet count is between 150,000-500,000. Cayden's count was below 9,000. After weeks of constant blood tests ruling out any other diseases/causes, Cayden was diagnosed with ITP. As a lot of you know, ITP has no cure and it is very scary, especially to a 4 year old little boy. Cayden's low platelet counts put him at risk for internal bleeding and makes it harder for his blood to clot if he gets cut. Cayden's ITP is well controlled as of right now and most days he is a normal 11year old boy. We can always recognize when his numbers are low just by his actions and to look at him. Cayden also can recognise when he is low and has told us he wishes he could have the energy of other kids when he's not feeling his best.
Please consider donating or joining our team for the Pump It Up For Platelets 5K in honor of Cayden. We all have hope that one day there will be a cure.
** Join me and my family Sunday,September 25, 2022 in Cranberry Twp., Pennsylvania where we will host a fun walk/run in honor of Cayden's ITP journey. Registration opens at 8:30 a.m. and the walk will begin at 10:00 a.m. There will be food, raffle prizes, face painting, music and fun for the entire family!** Thank you
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