Student educates classmates on cystic fibrosis
By Tony Zerucha
An Oak Bank Elementary School student is doing everything he can to find a cure for cystic fibrosis, and his most recent step was educating his classmates about the disease.
The cause is a deeply personal one, nine-year-old Lucas Filipchuk said Dec. 12.
“Cystic fibrosis is the most common genetic disease,” he began. “My brother (three-year- old Wyatt) got diagnosed with it when he was two weeks old.”
Filipchuk explained cystic fibrosis attacks mainly the lungs and digestive system. Among its effects are the production of a sticky mucus which traps in harmful bacteria and increases the risk of infection.
Wyatt completes therapy twice a day, Lucas said. After breakfast he uses a nebulizer, which turns his liquid medicine into a vapour which he inhales for 30 minutes. That is followed by physiotherapy consisting of arm exercises for another 30 minutes.
“My arms are already getting tired doing it so I can’t imagine doing it for half an hour,” Lucas said in demonstrating the exercises.
That hour-long process gets repeated after supper followed by an extra 10 minutes with the nebulizer later in the evening.
Wyatt also takes as many as 14 pig enzymes every day.
“If Wyatt didn’t take enzymes he would have difficulty digesting food and wouldn’t gain weight,” Lucas explained. “And he eats a lot. He eats about as much as a six-year-old and he’s only three.”
Wyatt sees plenty of doctors throughout the year, Lucas added. Every three months he visits a five-person team.
“He sees a nurse, a physiotherapist, a dietician, a pharmacist and a respiratory doctor.” Lucas said.
Lucas’ efforts to find a cure for cystic fibrosis don’t stop at education. He works hard running lemonade stands and participating in charity walks and other fund raisers with his family. Together they have raised approximately $25,000 since 2016.
There are no plans to stop these efforts either, Lucas said, before concluding by sharing his ideal ending to the story.
“Hopefully (Wyatt) is a doctor and cures CF some day,” Lucas said.
You can find the original story here.