This kid's reaction to finding out he's cancer-free is a tearjerker.

Sarah Kovac
Thu, 14 Jul 2016 22:32:52 +0000
Cancer, Chemotherapy, Treatment, Recovery, Acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Casi morris, Momcology, Ben morris, Ethan morris, Mike morris

In March 2013, Ben Morris had just turned 4 years old. That was when his parents, Casi and Mike Morris, learned he had cancer.

A few short weeks later, acute lymphoblastic leukemia had transformed Ben from his rowdy self into a frail, weak child near death in a hospital bed. “We almost lost him,” Casi says.

She describes the years to follow in this way: “Have you ever had a kid reach for the stove or step off a curb and a car is coming? That moment when your stomach clenches, adrenaline dumps, right before you throw yourself in front of the danger? That's what it is to have a kid with cancer, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. To say we were a mess is an understatement.“

All photos and video by Casi Morris, used with permission.

But when Ben’s big brother Ethan came to visit the little hospital room, he showed his parents how to make it through the difficult journey ahead.

Ethan wasn’t fazed by Ben’s frailty. He treated his little brother as he always had — he busted out the Legos, and they played together. In that moment, Casi and Mike knew they could follow Ethan’s lead in trying to provide as much normalcy as possible to their boys. That’s exactly what they did over the next 1,167 days of Ben’s chemotherapy treatments.

Ben and Ethan during Ben’s treatment.

First, they deemed his port an Iron Man arc reactor. The green chemo hanging from the IV pole was Ninja Turtle ooze. His hospital bed shape-shifted from a pirate ship to the Mystery Machine to a deserted island. For over three years, the Morris family held onto hope that good news would come ... and then it did.

In June 2016, Casi was able to tell her boys that Ben’s lab results came back clear of cancer.

Ben won the battle. And the boys could barely contain themselves when they heard the chemo was coming to an end.

Lucky for us, Casi recorded their reaction. Since she posted it on June 1, 2016, it’s been viewed over 400,000 times — because it’s just about the sweetest thing ever:

“We did it,” Casi says. “There were so many times I didn’t think we could.”

Congrats to you and your whole family, Ben!