| My beloved grandson, Joseph Hollander Bergsma, died needlessly from metastatic retinoblastoma on December 22, 2000. Joey was three years old. Awareness would have saved his life. I was taking pictures of the tumor reflecting the light and did not know it�these pictures would have saved his vision and his life. More importantly, if an ophthalmoscope would have been used to screen his eyes at his 15 month or 18 month well-baby exam�Joey would be alive. Joey�s journey was short, but his message is powerful. The last year of his life was a miracle. We were at Sloan Kettering in Manhattan for 8 months and the Burzynski Clinic in Houston for over 2 months. The last ten days of his life we were at home in Florida. Joey died in his house where he wanted to be. Everyday was a gift and I thought he was to be the first child to survive this disease. Through his death I realized the miracle was; Joey is to be the last child to die needlessly from it. |
