At the age of eight, Brendan Stones has had 11 strokes, four of which have been major.Despite his hard life, Brendan developed a love for the Blue Bulls rugby team, especially lock Victor Matfield, and this past weekend the Reach for a Dream Foundation helped create unforgettable moments for him and his family. He not only got to meet Matfield, but also watched the Bulls take on the Reds.
Before their bus trip to Pretoria, his dad, Tim – who is a die-hard Stormers fan – and mom, Lisa, shared Brendan’s story with the Dispatch.
Just before his fourth birthday, Brendan had his first major stroke while recovering from chicken pox. Doctors thought it was post-vasculitis and treated it as such.
It was only after his second stroke two years later in 2013, that Brendan was diagnosed with moyamoya.
According to the Mayo Clinic, moyamoya is a rare blood vessel disorder in which a ring of blood vessels at the base of the brain and the uppermost segments of the arteries supplying the brain progressively narrow, causing blood flow to the brain to become reduced.
The diagnosis took three days to make through various consultations with health professionals overseas.
The disease is estimated to affect one in 300000 children.
By Christmas that year, Brendan had the third of his major strokes and was rushed to a hospital in Port Elizabeth where the diagnosis was confirmed.
Last year, Brendan had 23 holes drilled into his brain at the Red Cross Children’s Hospital in Cape Town. The average for moyamoya surgery is four to six holes. Surgery was done on both sides of his brain.
But heartbreakingly, only hours after the operation, Brendan suffered his worst stroke to date.
His mother said: “He was unable to move on his right side, couldn’t talk, couldn’t swallow and for about nine hours, he was blind as well.”
What has followed has been a series of various intensive therapies from speech, to physio and occupational therapy.
Brendan now attends school though unfortunately the latest results show his condition is regressing. He now has what is called “unstable moyamoya disease”, a worse prognosis. Brendan may not live to see adulthood.
Reach for a Dream East London branch manager Santi Reynolds said Brendan had made the foundation aware of the disease, as before him the condition had not featured on their list of fatal illnesses.
She said because Brendan cannot fly, Greyhound willingly sponsored the travel tickets.
Reynolds said the Stones family stayed at a five-star hotel and watched the captain’s practice, with a big highlight just before the match on Saturday evening when Matfield gave Brendan his own personal Springbok kit.
Brendan was also treated to a visit to Swartkops Raceway where he did two laps in a racing car with Ross Lazarus who drives a Ford GT40, the only one of its kind in Africa. — vuyiswav@dispatch.co.za
Blue Bull magic for boy, 8, suffering from rare disease
Before their bus trip to Pretoria, his dad, Tim – who is a die-hard Stormers fan – and mom, Lisa, shared Brendan’s story with the Dispatch.
Just before his fourth birthday, Brendan had his first major stroke while recovering from chicken pox. Doctors thought it was post-vasculitis and treated it as such.
It was only after his second stroke two years later in 2013, that Brendan was diagnosed with moyamoya.
According to the Mayo Clinic, moyamoya is a rare blood vessel disorder in which a ring of blood vessels at the base of the brain and the uppermost segments of the arteries supplying the brain progressively narrow, causing blood flow to the brain to become reduced.
The diagnosis took three days to make through various consultations with health professionals overseas.
The disease is estimated to affect one in 300000 children.
By Christmas that year, Brendan had the third of his major strokes and was rushed to a hospital in Port Elizabeth where the diagnosis was confirmed.
Last year, Brendan had 23 holes drilled into his brain at the Red Cross Children’s Hospital in Cape Town. The average for moyamoya surgery is four to six holes. Surgery was done on both sides of his brain.
But heartbreakingly, only hours after the operation, Brendan suffered his worst stroke to date.
His mother said: “He was unable to move on his right side, couldn’t talk, couldn’t swallow and for about nine hours, he was blind as well.”
What has followed has been a series of various intensive therapies from speech, to physio and occupational therapy.
Brendan now attends school though unfortunately the latest results show his condition is regressing. He now has what is called “unstable moyamoya disease”, a worse prognosis. Brendan may not live to see adulthood.
Reach for a Dream East London branch manager Santi Reynolds said Brendan had made the foundation aware of the disease, as before him the condition had not featured on their list of fatal illnesses.
She said because Brendan cannot fly, Greyhound willingly sponsored the travel tickets.
Reynolds said the Stones family stayed at a five-star hotel and watched the captain’s practice, with a big highlight just before the match on Saturday evening when Matfield gave Brendan his own personal Springbok kit.
Brendan was also treated to a visit to Swartkops Raceway where he did two laps in a racing car with Ross Lazarus who drives a Ford GT40, the only one of its kind in Africa. — vuyiswav@dispatch.co.za
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