Atlas Twp.-Christmas 2015 will be memorable for two major reasons for Jake Sanford and Tella Campbell.
One, it is their son Brantlee’s first Christmas, and two, it was when their 3-month-old finally came home from the hospital.
‘We will never forget this Christmas,? said Jake, a 2004 Goodrich High School graduate, on Monday, just a few days after his son came home from Texas with Tella, Brantlee’s mother and Jake’s fiancee.
Brantlee was born six weeks prematurely Sept. 13 at Hurley Medical Center in Flint, but prior to Dec. 17, had not come home. Despite being a preemie, Brantlee weighed more than 8 pounds when he was born and was soon diagnosed with congenital hyperinsulinism and has been being treated by specialists at Cook Children’s Hospital in Fort Worth Texas for the past two-and-a-half months.
According to congenitalhi.org, congenital hyperinsulism is the most frequent cause of severe, persistent hypoglycemia in newborn babies and children. In most countries it occurs in approximately 1/25,000 to 1/50,000 births.
Brantlee has the worst case of congential hyperinsulism ever docu-mented in North America. His blood sugar was so low, surgeons were forced to remove 98 percent of his pancreas in two surgeries, desperately trying to regulate his insulin production.
‘HI causes a particularly damaging form of hypoglycemia because it denies the brain of all the fuels on which it is critically dependent… The lack of appropriate fuel to the brain may result in seizures and coma and if prolonged may result in death of the cells. It is this cell damage which can manifest as a permanent seizure disorder, learning disabilities, cerebral palsy, blindness or even death.?
Brantlee will eventually be a diabetic, which will actually be easier to maintain than his current condition.
After the two surgeries to remove the majority of his pancreas was unsuccessful in controlling his low blood sugar, a third surgery was deemed impossible and doctors instead prescribed a new drug, sirolimus, an immunosuppressant typically used on transplant patients. Prior to the drug therapy, Brantlee had PICC (peripherally inserted central catheter) lines, similar to an IV, but more intense, Jake explains, in which his son was pumped full of a dextrose solution. The baby has a feeding tube and his parents must give him injections twice a day with a drug that blocks the cells that create insulin. Brantlee is also on an antibiotic constantly to ward off pneumonia.
His parents must check his blood sugar every three hours, but if it is low, they know how to bring it back up and Brantlee was finally able to come home after his PICC lines were removed and now he has only the port in his belly for the feeding pump. Jake, a Marine veteran and truck driver for Coca-Cola, notes his son will get better in time when he moves to solid foods.
‘Don’t ever take having healthy kids for granted,? said Jake. ‘It’s been a roller coaster, but the support is amazing. We are so grateful for the community. We will be knocking on some doors. I believe in God and that it takes a village to raise a child. It’s amazing how a small community like Goodrich has come together for us. The medical world is amazing.?
Brantlee, Jake continued, has a page in the medical books all to himself. CHI International all looked at his scans and confirmed it is the worst case they have ever seen. Brantlee can’t be cured, but his parents can control his sugar. The baby weighs 19-and-a-half pounds at 3 months due to the amount of sugar he must be given in order to ensure brain development. He is unable to metabolize what he is given.
‘His body is too big, because he needs sugar, but his brain needs the sugar to develop,? said Jake. ‘We are sacrificing his weight right now for development of his intelligence. We will put him on the treadmill in a couple years, but there is just more to love… We are proud of our child. I spent four years in the Marine Corps and was in Iraq and this is still the most unique thing to deal with. I don’t wish this on anyone, but we are proud of our child. He is making good eye contact, smiling, he sticks his tongue out. He is a really happy baby and doesn’t cry too often, just when he wants to be held.?
There will be plenty of arms to do that this Christmas where a family celebrates their baby’s homecoming.