On August 15th 2007, Kody at the age of 5, went for a routine eye exam in order to start kindergarten. The eye doctor saw something suspicious and suggested getting him examined further. He was taken that day by his parents to Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago. After several tests and a CAT scan, the devastating discovery was made. Kody had a tumor in the center of his brain on his brain stem. First thing the next morning an MRI revealed which type of tumor we were dealing with. It was a medulloblastoma, a rare, highly aggressive, type of brain cancer. Kody was taken into surgery that morning for a nearly 9 hour brain surgery to try and remove as much of the tumor as possible. Kody spent the next 23 days in the hospital, quickly followed by the next phase of treatment. He then endured 30 doses of radiation to his brain and spine, followed by 6 months of inpatient chemotherapy. Kody, now 10 years old, is still trying to recover from and overcome the obstacles from this terrible disease. It took him more than a year and many hours of physical therapy to walk on his own. His balance is still severely effected, from the damage to his brain stem. He will now start the next phase of his journey. The introduction of growth hormone. Kody has not grown in the past 5 years. In order to kill the cancer cells and prevent regrowth, all growth in his body has been stopped. His family is happy to start the growth hormone process as it may help with some of his physical issues as well as possibly prevent developmental problems. This very long and costly hormone replacement also comes with great risk. Initiating growth in Kody's body also has the potential to start regrowth of cancer cells, as well as possible skeletal deformities. Kody is an amazing kid with unbelievable strength, courage, and kindness. He has always remained so positive throughout it all. He will never stop fighting. Please help in anyway you can to find a cure for medulloblastoma and all other forms of pediatric cancers. Thank you Erik Kuechenberg (Kody's Dad)