Clayton

How one boy inspires humor and a push for pediatric cancer research 

Clayton’s wish: To be a cancer research scientist.

“Do I have to go see those naughty bloody girls?” It was the one serious, very direct question then-3-year-old Clayton asked his parents, Cody and Lauren, whenever they took him to Children's Health℠.

When Clayton's cancer treatment began a couple of years ago, his parents envisioned their little boy struggling through chemotherapy, radiation and a surgery that would leave a scar arching across his abdomen. But the only moment that really got to Clayton was something lots of kids are apprehensive of – a poke. 

The “naughty bloody girls” was the fun-loving way Clayton characterized the phlebotomists, who have a knack for gentle pokes when taking blood samples for labs during Clayton’s cancer treatment.   

“After he got his poke, then it was all jokes on, game on,” Cody said.  

Cody and Lauren even gifted the phlebotomists a mug with the phrase to display in the clinic.  

“Our pediatrician told us from the get-go that kids feed off of us. Stay positive and he will feed off that. But the thing is, he was the positive and joyful one, so we actually fed off of him,” Lauren said.  

A pediatrician’s intuition gets Clayton the care he needs  

Clayton’s diagnosis began during a trip to the pediatrician, prompted because they noticed his belly was distended and beginning to protrude more to one side. That day, their usual pediatrician was away, so they saw another doctor from the practice. When examining Clayton’s belly, he immediately felt a mass and relayed his concerns.

“We were told to leave immediately and go straight to Children’s Health. The doctor didn’t even want us to check out,” Lauren said.

On the way, they called their regular pediatrician, who had already talked to the other doctor. Their pediatrician relayed that based on the location of the mass it was possible Clayton had a Wilms tumor, a common type of pediatric kidney cancer.  

Clayton’s CT scan confirmed what the pediatrician suspected.

Two days later, Samir Pandya, M.D., Pediatric Surgeon at Children’s Health and Associate Professor at UT Southwestern Medical Center, removed the tumor and Clayton’s left kidney.

“He was phenomenal and wonderful and provided such great care. They warned us that Clayton's tumor was very large, and may rupture when removing it. If that happened, radiation would be a big part of his treatment plan because all of those cells would spill into his abdomen,” Lauren said. “But Dr. Pandya was able to remove it without rupturing it, so that was a big answered prayer.”

After seven days of recovery, Clayton was cleared to begin the next stage of treatment.

But there was a curveball: Once clinicians inspected the tumor under the microscope, they discovered aggressive cancer cells.

Following Clayton’s positive lead 

Because of the aggressive cells and his tumor being pressed against so many other organs, Clayton would need eight months of chemotherapy and six days of radiation to ensure there weren’t cancer cells hiding anywhere else in his body.

It was hard to hear that Clayton needed more chemotherapy, along with watching their little boy lose his hair and endure the discomfort of radiation.

But Cody and Lauren worked hard to maintain the positivity that Clayton woke up with every day.

“Overall, he was in amazing spirits, just a happy-go-lucky kid, who ran into the hospital with a smile on his face,” she said. “We’re fortunate that he doesn’t carry any negative emotions from his experience.”

They watched as their team of nurses, doctors, child life specialists and phlebotomists (also known as “the naughty blood girls”) united around Clayton’s care and his patient experience.

“Before surgery, the child life specialist explained to Clayton that when he came out, he would have a mark on his chest. However, she described it to Clayton as his superhero symbol across his chest, rather than a scar. It lets everybody know that he beat a bad guy,” Cody said. “For a kid that's 3-and-a-half, that turned his scar into something to be proud of, and to this day, he will proudly show anyone his scar.”

From then on, Clayton became his parents’ superhero.

“That whole theme of him being a superhero carried over to the team that surrounded us for his treatment,” Cody said. “I don't think people realize how fortunate we are to have one of the best pediatric hospitals in the country, in our city.”

Clayton's parents become advocates for philanthropy and research  

Lauren and Cody were shocked when they learned that only about 4 percent of federal funding for cancer research goes to children, according to the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation. This turned them into fierce champions for philanthropy.

"It showed us how important it is for fundraising to help fill that gap," Cody said. "When you're making a gift to research a pediatric disease, you're investing in something that will help kids who potentially have another 50, 60, 70 years of life in front of them. How many investments can we make in this lifetime where you can see that kind of long-term return on your investment?”

By chance, the family got to understand the outcomes of Wilms tumor research when they met a Wilms tumor survivor through friends at church. She had her tumor removed more than 30 years ago when treatment outcomes were much less certain. Because her doctor was connected to research, her parents were able to enroll her in a trial study for new treatments.

“Back then, doctors removed tumors and waited to see if patients lived or died. Thankfully, the trial was successful and she lives to tell the story,” Lauren said. “Now, 30 years later that research has directly impacted our family, and our doctors were able to provide a very clear plan for our son and that came with a 90% success rate.”

Now, the couple is committed to sharing their family’s story to help advance treatment options for kids who will be diagnosed when Clayton is an adult. Already, Cody serves on the board of a local nonprofit that works alongside Children’s Health to raise funds for pediatric cancer research to help kids like Clayton, who will start kindergarten next year, now and in the future.

“I don't know that you could pay back all the support that we’ve been given, but you can certainly pay it forward,” Cody said. “We are always open to those opportunities to do what we can, whether it's in time, in talents or financially.”

Cody and Lauren also understand that the extensive population growth in North Texas means Children’s Health must be prepared to meet the unique and wide-ranging needs of a growing number of children in our community, requiring advanced and specialized care. And they understand how lucky they are to have one of the country’s largest and most prestigious pediatric health care providers in their backyard.

“It’s wonderful to have the best doctors, but we need to surround them with a team and state-of-the-art facilities so they can continue to do the great work they do,” Cody said. “And the only way to get that done is through fundraising.”

Better facilities and technology, mean more capacity to give every child the right care when they need it. However, the couple is also looking to Children’s Health to continue to be champions of pediatric cancer research. And because of the limited funding available, they’ll be reaching out to the community to raise awareness and build the support needed to propel the survival rates of all types of pediatric cancers.

They want to ensure that more kids like Clayton can continue doing all the things they love to do like playing sports, dancing or enjoying time with their pets and their brothers and sisters. And most importantly, showing off their superhero scars that mark their cancer journey.

“The research advances for Wilms tumors are because of families who wanted better treatments and because donors who wanted to make a difference. Then, the amazingly smart doctors and researchers who put those funds to use. But not every type of cancer has the clear path that Wilms does,” Lauren said. “The donor community is the key to doctors being able to provide the same level of comfort that we received, to all families.” 

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