Tummy Ache Turns Out To Be Cancer, ER Visit During Pandemic Was Critical Decision

DENVER (CBS4) - A little boy from Denver had a bad tummy ache that would not go away. Despite warnings to avoid hospitals because of the pandemic, his concerned parents rushed him to an emergency room. That smart decision has made fighting stage 4 cancer a little easier.

On a Tuesday in July, Ty Davis hits the hall in a shiny red Tesla, his kid-sized vehicle of choice at Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children (RMHC).

The hospital has become, sort of, his second home. He first arrived back on March 28th.

"Ty woke up about 10:00 that morning screaming in pain," Robyn Davis, Ty's mother, told Health Specialist Kathy Walsh.

It was the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Fear was keeping people from hospitals.

But Robyn and Terrence, Ty's father, were so worried they took Ty to an ER. Scans showed a mass in his stomach.

"I punched my truck a couple of times, threw myself on the ground, what do you do?" asked Terrence.

Ty was rushed to RMHC. The diagnosis was metastatic neuroblastoma, a tumor was above his kidney and the cancer had spread to his bones. Getting him care was critical.

"A few more days, I think it could have been a much more dangerous situation than it was," said Dr. Jennifer Clark, one of Ty's oncologists.

Clark said Ty has endured brutal treatment including five rounds of high dose chemotherapy and major surgeries. He spent his fifth birthday in the hospital.

"He's amazing, he's a very tough kid, he's got a great attitude," said Clark.

His parents say, during his first 11-week stay, it was the tiny Tesla that got Ty out of his room.

The doctors, nurses and staff got him better.

"He's already bouncing back," said Robyn.

"I can't thank God enough," said Terrence.

Ty will have more time to tool around in the Tesla at RMHC. He has two stem cell transplants ahead, then months-long drug therapy.

"It's stressful," said Robyn.

But all are hopeful this brave little boy will be cured.