Three-year-old Dylan Askin was diagnosed with a rare form of lung cancer, but just one month after starting treatment, he collapsed at school. The little boy from Derby, England, had a long and rough recovery road ahead of him, but suddenly, things took a turn for the worse.
Dylan’s rare lung cancer, called pulmonary langerhans cell histiocytosis, forms cysts on his lungs, making it difficult to breathe. After he began chemotherapy treatments, his prognosis actually looked good. But after he collapsed at school and was rushed to the hospital, the doctors discovered Dylan’s life hung in the balance.
While at school, both of Dylan’s lungs collapsed. The doctors were forced to place him on life support and he was admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit at the hospital. If that wasn’t frightening enough for his family, he contracted an infection and his organs began to fail. Dylan’s temperature spiked and plummeted, and his heart rate raced to 200 beats per minute. The doctors delivered the heartbreaking news no parent ever wants to hear.
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Kerry, 29, and Mike, 36, knew their son was suffering. His oxygen levels had crashed when they were asked to decide if they wanted to remove him from life support. It was Good Friday. Kerry told The Telegraph that it was a miracle Dylan had actually survived as long as he had. When his lungs first collapsed in January 2016, his CT scans at that time showed he shouldn’t have lived through that medical emergency.
“Mike and I were just thinking of his brothers, thinking whether we were being selfish hanging on to him when he must be suffering so much. He’s so close to his brothers. It was such a hard decision, but the doctors said his organs were failing and there was nothing they could do.”
So Mike and Kerry Askin had their blond-haired boy baptized and said their tearful goodbyes. Their older son, six-year-old Bryce, was there, too. Baby Logan was being cared for by others. As part of the process of taking someone off life support, the doctors weaned him off the muscle sedatives. But what happened next left them shocked.
Dylan began moving his legs. He should not have been able to move if was truly brain dead from oxygen starvation. So the doctors jumped to action and ran several tests. They discovered that his brain was still functioning and he actually just might live. So doctors left the courageous preschooler on life support and he remained in the hospital for a few more weeks, slowly recovering. Kerry told The Telegraph that the whole experience was miraculous.
“We were trying not to be hopeful, but we just sat by him and hoped and over the weekend he got stronger and stronger. We had told Bryce that Dylan wasn’t coming back, so when we explained that he had got better Dylan said, ‘Oh, so he’s like Jesus then.’ I said, ‘you’re not wrong.’ He had just risen from the dead.”
Mike told 5 News that they will catch themselves randomly crying at the store or just watching Dylan play, because he isn’t supposed to be alive. He’s what they lovingly call their miracle baby, Mike said.
“The head of PICU refers to him as a miracle, so when he does, it’s pretty hard not to.”
Here’s a personal interview in the family’s home about Dylan’s amazing journey.
Now, Dylan is at home and undergoing treatment for the cysts on his lungs. Because his lungs have collapsed before and his immune system is weaker, his family worries about the winter season and him contracting a deadly infection. But for now, they simply cherish every minute with their little boy who bravely fought death when no one thought he could.
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Family Has Son Baptized Before Pulling Plug, Then Doctors Witness Him Rise Awake
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