Dallas teen battling leukemia has special Palm Sunday celebration as he is in remission
DALLAS - A 14-year-old boy who is battling leukemia has something to celebrate this weekend after getting long-awaited test results back that show he is in remission.
Pike Petersen was diagnosed with leukemia and had a bone marrow transplant 100 days ago.
On Saturday, friends and family gathered at his hospital to celebrate Palm Sunday with him a day early.
His parents said it meant a lot to them.
The Petersen family hoped Pike would be out of the hospital and able to join them at church by Palm Sunday.
Unfortunately, he’s still recovering, but the family received good news Saturday morning that his test was negative for leukemia.
Since Petersen isn’t able to attend church Sunday, his family brought church to him Saturday.
Members of the Park Cities Baptist Church gathered at the Medical City Children’s Hospital for a Palm Sunday service.
For the first time in weeks, Petersen was able to see many of his friends and other family members.
His dad said the celebration lifted his son’s spirits.
"There’s a lot of people that don’t get to this step and have to say goodbye to their children, and we’re mindful of that. We’re not ready to give up yet, and neither is Pike, so we just keep fighting," Paul Petersen said.
Last year, Petersen was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia and needed a bone marrow transplant.
His older brother was found to be a donor match.
Dallas teen who inspired North Texans to register for bone marrow donations finds match
The majority of blood cancer patients can only find exact matches among strangers. But in Pike Petersen's case, the match turned out to be close to home: his own brother.
Sunday marks 100 days since he received the transplant.
Petersen’s story inspired thousands to get swabbed to see if they might be a match.
His church held several donor drives and four people were identified as matches for others in need.
Right now, there’s no timeline on when Petersen could leave the hospital.
His family said he gets stronger every day and they are eager to have him come home.
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