s we celebrate our nation’s independence today, I hope you’ll also help celebrate a different kind of victory.
Not one won with fireworks or parades.
But by a 15-year-old boy who refuses to stop fighting for his life.
If you’ve been following Will Roberts’ journey with me, you know this Alabama teenager is battling Stage 4 osteosarcoma.
After exhausting nearly every treatment available, a viral video helped his story reach people across the country and opened the door to an experimental treatment in California that his family prayed would give him one more chance.
Then, just days ago, everything took another frightening turn.
Will developed a fracture in his spine. His pain became so severe that even powerful medications could no longer control it. He began bleeding internally, his platelet count dropped so low doctors had to stop the very treatment they had traveled across the country to receive, and he was rushed by ambulance to another hospital as doctors fought to stabilize him.
Many of you also watched the heartbreaking conversation his father shared from Will’s hospital room.
Sitting beside his son’s bed, he told Will how proud he was of him. He reminded him that no matter what happened, God would never leave him. He told his son that even through this unimaginable battle, he had already accomplished something bigger than most people ever do by bringing others closer to Christ through his faith.
It was a conversation no father ever hopes to have.
Today, though, this family finally has reasons to smile.
Doctors now believe the frightening complications happened because a large number of Will’s cancer cells began dying all at once. His medical team says the treatment appears to be attacking the tumors so aggressively that his body has struggled to clear everything fast enough, creating a rare complication doctors don’t often see with osteosarcoma.
While they are still far from out of the woods, Brittney says Will’s numbers are beginning to improve.
He was able to sit up in bed today.
He even ate half a banana.
His double vision is almost completely gone.
His grandmother sat beside him, gently giving him a massage to help reduce the swelling, while family friends who flew all the way from Alabama simply sat in the waiting room for hours because they wanted to be close if they were needed.
Through a little creativity and the kindness of hospital staff, they were eventually able to spend time with Will before flying back home.
Brittney also wanted everyone to know how grateful they are for the doctors and nurses at Rady Children’s Hospital. She believes they recognized this rare complication early enough to prevent something much worse, and she says the level of care they’ve received has been extraordinary.
The prayers aren’t over.
Will still needs the bleeding in his urinary system to stop. His liver and kidneys still need to remain strong. His fractured spine still can’t be repaired until his body recovers from this latest setback.
But for the first time in several days, this family is celebrating something they desperately needed.
Hope.
As families gather today to celebrate America’s freedom, I hope you’ll take just a moment to celebrate this young man’s courage too.
Please continue praying that Will’s body keeps responding to treatment, that his blood counts continue improving, that his pain becomes manageable, and that this unexpected setback becomes the breakthrough his family has been praying for all along.
