Rucker Update: “I Ain’t Afraid of No Surgeries”

Hey everyone, Uncle Will here with an update on Rucker, our Smooth Criminal (see below pics from Halloween).  Unfortunately, Rucker still has cancer.  That’s the bad news.  It would have been pretty cool if they let me do the “Rucker Is Cancer-free!” post though.  Can I call dibs on that one?

Just a quick reminder: Rucker has Sclerosing Epithelioid Fibrosarcoma (SEF) of the kidney, stage IV.  If you’ve googled it, you probably haven’t found much.  While extremely rare, that doesn’t mean it isn’t treatable.  The excellent doctors at Children’s started Rucker’s current treatment plan back in August.  Since then, the combination of chemo and radiation has been working: his tumors have not been growing or spreading.  That’s the good news!  So where do we go from here?

More on this below, but here is an updated schedule of Rucker’s upcoming surgeries:

November 12th - MD Anderson, Houston, TX - scrape out tumor in right leg, fill with cement mix to strengthen bones and improve Rucker’s mobility

November 26th - Children’s, Birmingham, AL - surgery to remove primary tumor and his kidney

To take a step back, many of you know that Rucker broke his leg about a month ago.  This is the same leg he broke earlier in the year, which is when the doctors discovered the cancer (tumors in legs were an indication of a more serious problem).  After the first cast came off, Rucker had a great time - literally running around with family and friends.  Getting another cast on his leg, after breaking it for the second time, was obviously a major bummer for the Ruck-Man.  He’s been in good spirits in spite of his immobility - “couch dancing” whenever a hot jam comes on.

The doctors are now comfortable moving forward with the aforementioned surgeries.  The operation on his leg, which will be performed by an orthopedic specialist at MD Anderson, will help Rucker get on his feet again (and make breakdancing much, much easier).  This surgery is now scheduled for Monday, November 12th, in Houston, TX.

The kidney surgery, which was originally scheduled for today, November 9th, has been pushed back to the end of the month.  After much discussion, the doctors decided it would be better to fix Rucker’s leg first, so that he can have better mobility as he prepares (mentally and physically) for the big surgery on the 26th.

Thanks to everyone for all of the support.  Hope to have more good news to share in the future!

Much love,

Uncle Will