Two-year-old Addy Trevino of Seeley Lake was just diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor.
Addy snuggles with her mother Jen in her hospital room in Seattle.
Treay smiles as he holds his Addy Boo in Seattle.
Addy's big sister Miya joins her in her hospital bed. Miya couldn't wait to play with her best friend Addy.
SEELEY LAKE – Addy Trevino was a healthy, active, happy two-year-old up until two weeks ago. Now she and her family are facing six weeks of radiation for an inoperable brain tumor.
Addy's parents Jen and Treay Trevino both graduated from Seeley-Swan High School. They have been working in Seeley Lake since 2009 and just bought their first house in Seeley Lake last August. Treay currently works at Rovero's and Jen is a sous chef at Double Arrow Lodge.
"If you have had breakfast or lunch at the Double Arrow Jen was your chef. Even though people may not know Jen, they know her cooking," said close friend Mary Lynne Jones. "Treay, if he hasn't waited on you in Rovero's, you've heard his loud, boisterous, happy-go-lucky voice."
The Trevinos have a five-year-old daughter Miya and Addy who was born Aug. 31, 2014. Jen and Treay lovingly refer to Addy as their "Little Monster" and "Addy Boo" because of her high energy. She had the ability to walk the windowsills and would figure out how to go anywhere she wanted to go, even if it meant using the dishwasher door to climb up on the counter top.
Early in the week of June 26, the Trevinos noticed that Addy was getting clumsy. She would tilt her head to the left when she walked, couldn't walk in a straight line, was slurring her speech and had trouble focusing. Jen thought that it might be a growth spurt but the symptoms got worse. At Jen's brother's funeral Wednesday, June 28, others noticed something was wrong.
Thursday, Jen took Addy to two different area doctors and didn't get any answers. A CT scan was ordered for the following week.
Friday morning, Addy started vomiting. They immediately took her to the ER, had an MRI which revealed the tumor and she was life flighted to Seattle.
"The doctors saw the tumor on the MRI and they had a feeling it was a very fast growing tumor because she went from being perfectly fine to not being able to walk and vomiting in such a short period of time," said Jones.
Doctors diagnosed Addy with pediatric Diffuse Midline Glioma. Because the tumor is on the brainstem, it is inoperable. While Addy is in no pain because of it, the tumor affects her motor abilities and can cause an inability to communicate what she is thinking. It particularly affects her balance, making it a challenge for mom and dad to keep up with their "Little Monster."
Even though scientists have been studying this type of tumor for more than 100 years, very little is known about it. While Addy will undergo six weeks of radiation to kill the tumor that now makes up 20 percent of her brain, the tumor is known to mutate.
Addy is under the care of the best pediatric radiation specialist in the country in Seattle. He said there is a two-thirds chance that she will temporarily get better with radiation, one-sixth chance nothing will change and a one-sixth chance that she will get worse.
"The radiation will make her feel better, for a little while, but this tumor has no cure," wrote Jen in a Facebook post July 6 that took her more than two hours to write. "The doctor's words, 'It will make her feel a little better, for maybe a year.' I cannot explain the feeling that I experienced when I heard those words."
"I can't take this away and ultimately that's the hardest thing...," wrote Treay on his Facebook page after the diagnosis.
The family is staying at the Ronald McDonald House in Seattle during Addy's radiation treatments. If she is doing well enough, Addy will be released to come home.
"Knowing Addy she will be swinging off the walls," said Jones and laughed. "The plan is to come back to Seeley and try to do the most they can do to make the best, for both Addy and Miya, of a really [bad] situation."
"You have to have hope but you can't have false hope," Jen told Jones. "Now that the shock is over, the outpouring of love, prayers and support on Facebook is so comforting."
"They are so thankful for what everyone is saying and doing for them," said Jones. "From the lemonade stand this weekend [by Jadesa Stevens] to the churches, to the donation cans in various businesses, everything adds up. They love that word is getting out and are taking comfort in all of the support."
Jones continued, "Their expenses are continuing whether they are here or not. They just bought a house. They are out of work for a minimum of six weeks and one of them will probably not go back to work. Their whole idea is to make this year as great as possible. If we can alleviate that worry that is just one less thing for them to have to deal with."
You Can Help!
Stay Updated and Comment:
Visit https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/addybootrevino
Mail a Note or Gift:
Ronald McDonald House ATTN: Trevino
5130 40th Ave NE Room 275, Seattle, WA 98105
Donate to the Family:
Make Checks Payable to: Citizens Alliance Bank - Benefit of Addy Boo. Mail to PO Box 720, Seeley Lake, MT 59868. 100% of the donations go to the Trevinos.
GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/Help-the-Trevino-family
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