Newswanger Family Story

The Weston Newswanger Family Story

Weston Newswanger was a “completely normal” two-year-old boy. He loved to run, jump, and play.. However, in the Fall of 2016, he began to experience painful spells. He would scream and shake in pain, and his face would turn bright red.

Weston’s parents, Amy and Stephen, thought Weston may have been constipated. He was unable to communicate where the pain was, and he was still wearing diapers. Weston’s pediatrician believed that Weston may have irritable bowel syndrome, but he was very young to make that diagnosis, so he went to see a gastroenterologist. The gastroenterologist agreed with Amy and Stephen that Weston may be constipated, so they had Weston flush his colon. When they returned to the gastroenterologist, his symptoms had not improved, the gastroenterologist still felt a stoolball in Weston’s belly, which they would later discover was a tumor. Weston was sent to Hershey for a barium enema.

“It was an awful experience,” Amy recalled. Weston had to be awake for the entire procedure, and at the time, Amy was eight months pregnant with Weston’s little brother, Keegan, and could not be in the room. Stephen sat with Weston during the procedure, where they found a narrowing in Weston’s colon. There were multiple possibilities for what could have caused these symptoms, but cancer was never brought up. The medical team planned to do a biopsy and scope to determine why there was a narrowing. Once Weston was put to sleep, the doctor went in with his pinky and immediately found the tumor.

Weston’s doctors did not end up doing the biopsy and scope, so they took Weston to the recovery room and called Amy and Stephen in. Amy immediately went over to check on Weston, but when the doctor came in, he told Amy that she should sit down.

“Everybody was worried about me being pregnant and that the stress of him being put to sleep and all of these tests would put me into early labor,” Amy said.

The doctor wrote what he thought the tumor was on a piece of paper and told Amy and Stephen “not to google it.” He said that it might be a rhabdomyosarcoma. It was a shock to Amy and Stephen—they had never considered that it may be cancer. They spent a few more hours waiting to meet the oncologist and did some bloodwork. It was the day before Thanksgiving, so the Newswanger family went home and would return for a PET scan the following Monday. However, Weston became lethargic over the weekend, and they had no choice but to take him to the emergency room, where he was admitted.

They came to find out that Weston’s tumor was in his bladder, growing through the bladder wall and pushing onto his colon. The tumor prevented Weston from urinating, and his bladder was three times its size. The doctors inserted a catheter, which was extremely uncomfortable for Weston but helped to relieve his bladder.

Weston began chemotherapy on Amy’s birthday, December 5. He received multiple chemos at a time and had to be inpatient for those, as they would make him sick no matter how much nausea medication he got. They also had to flush his bladder every time he received chemo inpatient. For some rounds, he had to go daily, and for others, he would go weekly. When Weston was inpatient, he had to go to the clinic and get the Neulasta shot to help build his white blood cell count back up.

Weston did chemotherapy for just shy of a year. He also had to do proton radiation, since his tumor was close to many vital organs. Amy traveled to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in the middle of Weston’s treatment with Weston and Keegan, who was five weeks old at the time. Amy’s mom, sister, and Stephen took turns helping Amy out with Weston and the new baby during their stay.

“It was basically like having two newborn babies at once,” Amy said.

Weston had 28 doses of radiation, and his port was accessed throughout the week, which meant that he was at a greater risk of infection and could only take washcloth baths. He was in a lot of pain from the radiation and got two very large scars on his back and belly from the radiation beam.

Following his radiation, Weston returned to Hershey to complete his chemo on September 14, 2017, and went into remission soon after!

Before Weston’s treatment, Amy and Stephen had heard of Four Diamonds but did not know much about it. When they found out about Weston’s diagnosis, they were worried that they may have to sell their house and do whatever they had to afford Weston’s treatment. However, Aubrey, a social worker from Four Diamonds, came in and reassured Amy and Stephen that they would not have to worry about the financial end of things and that all his treatment and testing were covered.

“You can’t really describe how that makes you feel as a parent, but it was a huge weight lifted off our shoulders that he was going to get the care he needs, and it was not going to change our lives financially,” Amy said. “It is just an amazing, amazing feeling that I just can’t describe. It was a huge sense of relief for us.”

Four Diamonds not only covered Weston’s entire treatment but also provided gas vouchers to cover the hour-long drive that they often had to make to Hershey daily. They also provided food vouchers and would help with bills for their home and cell phone if needed. Four Diamonds also provided music therapy for Weston while he was going through treatment.

The Newswangers’ community also came together during this time. Their church, along with many local churches, reached out to help by sending gift cards and created a meal chain so that Amy and Stephen would not have to worry about cooking on long hospital days. A neighbor even cut wood for the Newswangers’ wood stove. The Newswangers’ pastor came to visit Weston, and Weston would often ask to listen to his sermons on the drive to Hershey.

The Newswanger Family was first paired with Club Gymnastics, and now with Club Water Polo. The Newswanger had a carnival with Club Gymnastics to celebrate Weston’s accomplishments and thank everybody for their support. Club Water Polo loves to visit the Newswanger’s house in Carlisle and meet Weston and his siblings at Sky Zone.

“We’ve had nothing but good times with them,” Amy said.

Steve and Amy attended their first THON Weekend in 2018 without Weston and Keegan while Weston was building back his immune system. Amy recalled that when they were walking down from their check-in, it was “unbelievable” to see all the student volunteers coming together in support of a cure.

“When you go to THON, you just see all of the amazing things and the time that was put into pulling off the weekend, and it’s incredible,” Amy said. “THON touches lives every day, and for those of us who have unfortunately needed it, we are forever grateful for the help.”

Weston is now a happy, healthy 10-year-old boy in fourth grade! He loves to read, play sports (especially soccer), and is on a flag football team this fall. Keegan is now 7 and a big reader; he’s also good at math. Weston and Keegan now have a little sister, Briella, who is almost 6 and loves to show and ride horses. The Newswangers like to spend their free time camping and recently bought a camper! The Newswanger family cannot wait to someday return to the Bryce Jordan Center to dance in celebration of a cure, but for now, they look forward to attending events in THON 2025.