Toddler Beats Leukemia With Big Sister Always At His Side

Aug 15, 2022

In September 2018, a Texas mother of three inadvertently changed the public perception of pediatric cancer with a series of photos she posted on Facebook. Kaitlin Burge had clicked a candid of her daughter Aubrey comforting her little brother Beckett. However, this wasn't a casual case of soothing a sibling after a skinned knee. 

Beckett was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in April 2018. In mere months, the 4-year-old went from a rambunctious child to a frail patient. Aubrey, 5, stayed at her brother's side. Burge, in her post, touched on the effect Beckett's treatments had on their sibling bond. 

She wrote, "You always hear about the financial and medical struggles, but how often do you hear about the struggles families with other children face?" She attached two striking photos of her children, with Aubrey rubbing her little brother's back as he vomited. Rarely is childhood cancer shown from this confronting angle. 

Burge continued, "My two kids, 15 months apart, went from playing in school and at home together to sitting in a cold hospital room together. My then 4-year-old watched her brother go from an ambulance to the ICU. She watched a dozen doctors throw a mask over his face, poke and prod him with needles, pump a dozen medications through his body, all while he laid there helplessly." Young Aubrey had to watch and, more devastatingly, learn what was happening to her baby brother. 

The big sister "watched (Beckett) struggle to walk and struggle to play. The lively, energetic, and outgoing little brother she once knew was now a quiet, sick, and very sleepy little boy." Burge went on to outline the confusion her older child went through during this stage of her brother's treatment. 

Judging from her post, Burge was keen to include her daughter Beckett's treatment, unwilling perhaps to hide the young girl from the truth. Explaining this choice, she wrote, "Children need support and togetherness, and should not be kept at a distance from the person who is ill." In the case of Beckett, Aubrey "spent a fair amount of time, by his side in the bathroom, while he got sick. She stuck by him. She supported him and she took care of him, regardless of the situation. To this day, they are closer. She always takes care of him." 

Burge leaned into the details and the nitty-gritty reality of what this meant for the siblings. She presented an unflinching portrait of the small support system the children had formed. Again without obscuring the truth, Burge told members of the Beckett Strong Facebook group, "Vomiting between play sessions. Waking up to throw up. Standing by her brother's side and rubbing his back while he gets sick." 

Thanks to the hard work of both his medical team as well as the support from his sister, Beckett eventually beat his cancer. After two years of treatment, he received his last in August 2021. Since then, the siblings have stayed close, maintaining their tight bond. In an interview with TODAY Parenting, Burge spoke on the inspiring Beckett and Aubrey, saying, "They walk to and home from school together. Even though they each have their own rooms, they sleep together." In great admiration for their shared strength, she said, “Those two have an unbreakable bond."

What's a special memory you have of your siblings? Let us know — and be sure to pass this article on to friends, family, and any proud big sisters!