Family raises $5M for BC Children’s Hospital after son beats cancer

The Cannon family will forever remember the date March 16, 2021.

That was the day their 12-year-old son Nicky received a diagnosis of a very rare form of cancer.

“That’s when I crumbled, that’s when I knew ultimately what was going to happen,” said Nicky’s mother Kelly.

“And he said ‘but good news, I’ve seen this before and I got a kid through it, so we’re going for cure,’ and that … changed everything.”

Thus began the journey.

Nicky spent months at BC Children’s Hospital (BCH), and after 13 rounds of chemotherapy, a stem cell transplant, 19 surgeries, and three weeks of radiation — Nicky is now two and a half years cancer free.

“I think that’s what a lot of parents must do — they have to trust the science, to know that BC Children’s is one of the world’s leading ones for cancer. To know that you can trust, that is a huge relief,” said Kelly.

To show their gratitude to the team of doctors, the Cannons spearheaded a fundraiser to raise money for pediatric cancer care.

In just half a year, they raised $5 million, establishing the Team Nicky Hospital Chair in Hematology, Oncology and Blood and Marrow Transplant (BMT).

BCH president and CEO Malcolm Berry says this funding will not only help children battling cancer in B.C., but around the world.

“Chairs like this ensure we’ve got the best people that are there to care for our kids, regardless of how rare or un-rare their cancer is,” he said.

“The funding will support enabling the clinical and research teams, research discoveries, bringing those discoveries to care, and training the next generation of researchers.”

According to Nicky, now in grade 10 at St. George’s Senior School, being healthy has never felt better.

“It feels really amazing that we can now give that support to that floor and all the kids going through the oncology system,” Nicky said.

The Cannon family hopes to continue expanding the chair so that each child and their family receives the best level of care they deserve. More details can be found at TeamNicky.com.