A mother has shared a powerful photo of her son’s head being shaved following a cancer diagnosis.
Two-year-old Wyatt Brooks, from Dallas, Texas, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a type of blood cancer, earlier this month.
It was the latest in a series of health struggles for the toddler, who was born with Down syndrome and heart defects.
The family immediately checked into Children’s Medical Center of Dallas and began treatment.
Once clumps of his hair started appearing on his pillow after beginning chemotherapy, his mother, Nichole, said she would rather shave her son’s head than have him watch his hair fall out due to cancer.
Nichole Brooks, from Dallas, Texas, shared a photo of her son, Wyatt, having his head shaved by a nurse after he was diagnosed with cancer
It was after coming back from a trip to the beach on June 2 that Nichole realized something was wrong with Wyatt (pictured). His body was covered in bruises, he had a full-body rash and had bloodshot eyes
After a series of tests, doctors confirmed that Wyatt (left and right, with his father) had acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a cancer of the blood. The family immediately checked into Children’s Medical Center of Dallas and began treatment
It was after coming back from a trip to the beach on June 2 that Nichole realized something was wrong with Wyatt.
His body was covered in bruises, he had a full-body rash and had bloodshot eyes.
After a series of tests, doctors confirmed that Wyatt had acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
‘There aren’t words to describe the emotions. I believed there had to be a mix-up in the lab. I asked the doctors if they were sure he had cancer every day for the first four days,’ Nichole told PEOPLE.
‘My heart shattered and I couldn’t breathe. I had no idea how we would get through this and I was terrified for what he would have to endure to beat this.’
ALL is a type of cancer in which the bone marrow makes too many immature white blood cells called lymphocytes.
They crowd out normal white blood cells, causing the body to have a harder time fighting infections.
According to St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, ALL is the most common type of childhood cancer. Approximately 98 percent of children go into remission within weeks of starting treatment and about 90 percent of those children can be cured.
In a Facebook post, Nichole wrote that she would rather shave her son’s head herself than have him gradually lose it to cancer.
‘I didn’t expect to have his haircut this soon but we made the decision that cancer would not take his hair away from him,’ she wrote on June 12.
‘Instead, we would take control and shave his head before that process took hold. We started to see hair on his pillow earlier this week and decided it was time.’
Nichole said that Wyatt has not reacted well in the past to haircuts, so the moment was planned carefully.
The family arranged for the cut to take place in Wyatt’s hospital room, with the toddler sitting on Nichole’s lap as his head was shaved.
‘He cried (which he always does with haircuts) and mama cried. It is a very visible reminder that my baby boy is battling for his life,’ Nichole wrote.
‘I was so afraid of how he would look without hair. The cut was quick and before i knew it He looked up at me with his beautiful brown almond shaped eyes and I just melted. When I showed him his new look he smiled ear to ear and signed “beautiful”.’
Wyatt has Down syndrome – a genetic disorder that causes developmental and intellectual delays – and is mostly non-verbal, instead communicating through American Sign Language.
Nichole and her husband, Colin, have two daughters, 17-year-old Raegan and 16-year-old Sophia, and adopted Wyatt right after he was born.
In a Facebook post, Nichole (left and right, with Wyatt) wrote that she would rather shave her son’s head herself than have him gradually lose it to cancer. The family arranged for the cut to take place in Wyatt’s hospital room, with the toddler sitting on Nichole’s lap as his head was shaved
Wyatt (left and right) has Down syndrome a genetic disorder that causes developmental and intellectual delays – and is mostly non-verbal, instead communicating through American Sign Language. After the haircut, Nichole said he smiled and signed the word for ‘beautiful’
Wyatt’s first phase of chemo has 14 days left of a 30-day treatment. Should all go well, he will be home by the beginning of July and will continue chemotherapy for at least three years, both at home and in the hospital
‘We’ve worked really hard to try to get the rest of the world to see Wyatt as every other children,’ Nichole told WFAA.
‘[When Wyatt signed “beautiful”], that just sort of said to me, that’s all he sees.’
Wyatt has a long road ahead of him. His first phase of chemo has 14 days left of a 30-day treatment. Should all go well, he will be home by the beginning of July.
He will then continue chemotherapy for at least three years, both at home and in the hospital.
But he has a great deal of support. His mother said he has received letters from all around the world, as far away as Australia and, at his Collin County pre-school, Kids R Kids, a ‘hat day’ was held for Wyatt to show support.
‘It’s just a fun way for him to celebrate his baldness,’ Nichole said. ‘I see his hair now is sort of a badge of honor, it’s an act of courage
Nichole and Colin have created a Facebook page called Wyatt’s World where they share updates on his diagnosis and educate followers about ALL.
A family friend has set up a GoFundMe page to help cover medical expenses for the Brookses. So far, more than $2,700 has been raised out of a $15,000 goal.