Szymek’s Fight for Independence: A Little Boy’s Urgent Need for Surgery
At only five years old, Szymek has lived through more challenges than many adults will face in a lifetime. His journey began the moment he entered the world, far too early, his tiny body struggling for every breath. Doctors diagnosed him with
For most parents, those early days of life are filled with joy and discovery. For Szymek’s parents, they were filled with fear, machines, and a fight for survival. And yet, Szymek held on. His fragile body, against so many odds, refused to give up.
The months that followed were filled with rehabilitation and therapies. Every day was a new attempt to help him gain strength, to give his body the tools it needed to grow. But despite their tireless efforts, progress did not come. When Szymek was just over a year old, his parents were given the diagnosis that would define his childhood:
The words were crushing, but they did not stop his family from fighting. They knew that every day mattered, and so they began the long road of daily exercises and therapies to prevent his condition from tightening its grip.
This past May, there was finally a breakthrough. Szymek underwent a selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR), a highly complex surgery designed to reduce muscle spasticity. The procedure loosened his painfully tense muscles and opened a window of hope for greater independence. For the first time, Szymek began to relearn how to crawl, how to sit up, and even how to take his first proper steps. For his parents, each tiny movement felt like a miracle.
But just as hope began to bloom, new fears arose. During a rehabilitation session, doctors discovered that Szymek’s hips were in danger. Without immediate intervention, he faced the risk of dislocation—a painful and debilitating complication that could rob him of the progress he had made and confine him to a wheelchair.
The recommended solution is bilateral femoral head hemiepiphysiodesis, a specialized surgery that can stop the deformation of his hip joints and protect against further damage. The catch? The waiting time through the National Health Fund would be at least a year and a half. For Szymek, that is far too long. Every month of delay increases the risk of permanent damage and lifelong disability.
His parents could not wait. They turned to the Paley European Institute, a world-renowned orthopedic and rehabilitation center known for treating complex pediatric cases. The institute offers not only the surgery but also the comprehensive rehabilitation needed to ensure lasting results. For Szymek, this represents the best chance at a future free from pain and dependency.
But hope, once again, comes at a staggering cost. The surgery, the rehabilitation, the specialized therapies—all of it carries a price far beyond what his family can manage alone. They have already given everything they can, financially and emotionally, to support their son. Yet this next stage of treatment is simply out of reach without help.
For Szymek’s parents, asking for help again is not easy. But their love for their son leaves no room for pride, only for determination. “We are doing everything we can to save our child’s health,” they say. “But we cannot do it without support. Every penny, every kind word, every act of generosity brings us closer to giving him the chance to walk, to live without pain, to grow up with dignity.”
Szymek’s story is not just about illness. It is about courage. It is about a little boy who has fought since birth and refuses to surrender. It is about a family who, despite fear and exhaustion, will never stop believing in him.
Today, Szymek stands at a crossroads. With surgery and rehabilitation, he has a chance to continue progressing, to build on the hope he found after his SDR procedure, to take steps into a brighter future. Without it, the risk of losing everything he has gained looms dangerously close.
His parents’ plea is simple: help us keep moving forward. Help us give our son the chance to live free from pain and the shadow of a wheelchair.
Because Szymek deserves not just survival, but the chance to thrive. And with the support of compassionate hearts, that chance can become his reality.
A Victory for Baby Evie: No Detectable Leukemia After Second Round of Treatment
Good news has a way of lifting spirits, and for the Williams family of Montgomery, Alabama, that good news arrived in the form of four little words:
Four-month-old Evie Williams has spent most of her short life in the fight of a lifetime. Diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, she entered a world not of lullabies and nursery colors, but of hospital rooms, IV lines, and long stretches of treatment. For her parents, Krystal and her husband, each day has been filled with both fear and hope — fear of what the diagnosis means, and hope that their little girl’s body will respond to the medicine designed to save her life.
Now, after weeks of procedures and two full rounds of treatment, Evie has given them a reason to celebrate. In a heartfelt message, her mother Krystal shared the update that brought tears of relief:
“In case you needed more good news: Evie finished her second round of treatment and now there’s no detectable leukemia in her bone marrow at all, even on the most sensitive test. We started her third chemo cycle yesterday. It’s 8 weeks inpatient, but she’s responding so well to treatment so far and praying hard for this round to go just as well!”
For families battling childhood cancer, those words — no detectable leukemia — carry enormous weight. It means that the treatments are working. It means that the painstaking hours in the hospital, the side effects, and the tears are not in vain. It means that, at least for now, the disease that once threatened to steal a future has been driven into retreat.
But the journey is far from over. Evie’s third chemotherapy cycle will keep her in the hospital for eight long weeks. For a baby who should be discovering the world from the comfort of home, the sterile hallways and constant monitoring of inpatient care have become her reality. Yet, her family clings to the hope that this round will be as successful as the last, and that their little warrior will continue to defy the odds.
Krystal’s words radiate both gratitude and faith. Behind every update is the reminder that they are not alone. Friends, family, and an ever-widening circle of supporters have rallied around them, praying, encouraging, and lifting their spirits on days when exhaustion threatens to overwhelm.
Evie’s progress is more than a medical update; it’s a story of resilience, love, and community. It reminds us that even in the smallest of fighters, strength can shine bright. Her parents have witnessed their baby endure more procedures in months than many adults face in a lifetime, yet still she carries on, responding to treatment with the kind of quiet courage that inspires everyone who hears her story.
Childhood cancer is relentless. It tests families in ways that are hard to imagine. But in Evie’s story, we find proof that progress is possible, that breakthroughs happen, and that hope can thrive even in the harshest environments.
The Williams family asks for continued prayers as they enter this next stage. They know the road is long, but with each milestone — with every test that shows progress — they move one step closer to the dream of bringing their daughter home healthy and free of disease.
So let’s share this good news far and wide. Let’s celebrate the victories, however small or large, because for families like Evie’s, they mean everything.
Today, Evie is not defined by cancer. She is defined by her fight, her progress, and the love that surrounds her. And for those who have been following her journey, this update is more than just news — it is hope in its purest form.
