Presenting Tyler Powers

Hi my name is Tyler and I will be 10 years old in November. I live at home with my parents and my sister who is 12. I also have 2 older sisters that are 20 and 25. I have a Labrador Retriever and a Blue & Gold Macaw.

I have Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia or (ALL) which I have been battling half of my life. I was diagnosed in March of 2005. I was only doing chemotherapy for 3 weeks when I had a side effect from it. The chemotherapy shots that I received caused 2 blood clots to form on my brain, which caused me to have a seizure, stroke and sent me into respiratory failure. My parents said I was really brave, but I don't really remember much. I spent the next 2 1/2 years in chemotherapy treatments. I finished in September of 2007. After that I became a "normal" boy. I attended school on a regular basis (except when I had a doctors appt.) and I was becoming more and more active every day. That lasted about 14 months.

I relapsed with ALL in November of 2008, the day before Thanksgiving. I am currently undergoing intense chemotherapy and so far it has been working well. I have to do 2 shots a day to prevent the blood clots from occurring again. The treatment is relentless and I am in the hospital a lot. I have another 1 1/2 years to go. I can only go to school part-time when my counts are good, the rest of the time I have a teacher coming to my house. I love NASCAR, I watch every race, my favorite driver is Jeff Gordon. I also love video games, puzzles , and doing crafts as well as things I can build. I also love Yorkshire Terriers, I really want one, but the doctor says I have to wait until the chemotherapy is done. I can't wait!!