Conner, Ryan and Brayden Sowa
The Sowa family’s journey with arthritis started years ago when Ryan, the middle brother, was diagnosed. Starting at 15 months old, Ryan would get random fevers and unexplained rashes, eventually leading to abdominal and joint pain. There were days he couldn’t even walk.
Ryan went through a lot of testing and treatments, resulting in unanswered questions and misdiagnoses. It wasn’t until he was a month away from being able to play football that he was finally seen by a rheumatologist. Ryan had looked forward to playing football for many years after watching his older brother play.
The day he was diagnosed with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), tears ran down his face. All this little boy heard was, “No contact sports,” which meant no football. He didn’t care that he had swollen, painful joints, or that the skin on his hands peeled until he bled. He wanted to be out there playing like all the other kids.
Since his diagnosis, Ryan has tried numerous treatments, and eight years later he still hasn’t found the right medication to minimize his symptoms. Fortunately, he has found a love for hunting, basketball and soccer, and when he’s able to play, he’s amazing.
Brayden, the youngest of the three brothers, was just 2 years old when he started having sleepless nights. He would lie there and cry. Many days he would try to run and play, but all he could do was walk with a limp, pushing through the pain while trying to keep up with others. X-rays and blood work led him straight to the rheumatologist. Three months after Ryan’s diagnosis, Brayden was diagnosed with childhood arthritis, too.
However, Brayden hasn’t let his diagnosis hold him back; he loves playing basketball and baseball, and last summer he played on the All-Star team!
康纳是三个男孩中最大的一个，比布雷登晚几个月被确诊。他的关节会在和朋友玩耍或做日常活动时脱臼。康纳的症状很快就出现了;他的膝盖越来越虚弱，越来越疼。由于行动不便和关节疼痛，他被转诊给多位专家。一个家庭的三个孩子都被诊断为JIA，这是前所未闻的，这让康纳保持着谨慎乐观的态度，直到他去看了风湿病医生，得到了和他两个兄弟一样的诊断。
Conner has become a medical mystery to his doctors. He’s had unexplained breaks in the cartilage o
f both knees and ankles, leading to 13 major surgeries, five of them in just over a year. He has been through intensive rehab, learning how to walk again multiple times. Unfortunately, the cartilage and bones in his ankles become so neurotic that orthopedic surgeons in Michigan didn’t know what to do.
Fortunately, two summers ago Conner and his family met the world’s best orthopedic surgeon in Baltimore. He works with many superstar athletes, and when he heard of Conner’s case, he wanted to see him. It was Conner’s last option in attempting to save his legs. His ankles were rebuilt with donor cartilage and bone grafts; all the damaged areas were removed and the doctor injected stem cells into both ankles and knees.
Today, all things considered, Conner is doing well, though his knees are also deteriorating. He’s due to have more surgeries in the near future. Despite life’s challenges, Conner finds time to hunt, plays water polo and is an honor student.
这三个男孩都尝试过许多昂贵的药物，但都失败了。加在一起，他们拥有的专家比他们的父母数不过来的多。目前，男孩们每三周接受一次静脉注射，每两周注射一次。他们都吞下一些药物来治疗症状和缓解疼痛。即使有昂贵的药物治疗，他们仍然痛苦。他们接受物理治疗，必要时接受关节注射。他们都必须抽血检查，以确保他们服用的药物不会造成器官损伤。
Despite their disease, the boys are tough and still find positives in each day. They all love spending time outdoors and cherish family time.
这些男孩为美国国立卫生研究院、辛辛那提儿童医院和海伦·德沃斯儿童医院的研究贡献了时间。多年来，他们一直在为大急流城步行治疗关节炎活动筹集资金，在晚会上发言，并参加了关节炎基金会提供的几项活动。教育和为治愈疾病而战永远是索瓦团队的使命。