When 10-year-old Oliver Tchakarov was diagnosed last year with mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma, he had a fight in front of him. The fifth grader at Saxe Middle School immediately began chemotherapy treatment at Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital. The son of Katarina and Svetlin Tchakarov battled hard, losing his hair but not his spirit, and thankfully he has regained his health.

With his parents and brothers, Simon, 8, and Thomas, 6, providing non-stop encouragement, Oliver is back in school. The family has lived in town for five years.

“As of April, Oliver has been classified as in remission,” said his mom. “It is the best news we could have hoped for, and real cause for rejoicing. Dr. Massaro, Oliver’s oncologist, personally reviewed Oliver’s last PET scan. After consulting with Dr. Wilson from Washington, D.C., they agreed that Oliver’s lymphoma is dying and getting smaller, to the point that he doesn’t need treatment anymore.

“Now it’s watch and wait. Oliver continues to visit his oncologist every two weeks. My husband and I can’t thank everyone enough for the constant support and well wishes. Everyone can exhale! It truly takes a village to cure pediatric cancer.”

There is much more to the story.

Oliver decided to tell his story publicly, hoping it would spur more funding for pediatric cancer research. He wrote letters to United States Vice President Joe Biden and Conn. Sen. Christopher Murphy that read in part,

‘Before cancer I was a ball of energy. I would run around chasing my brother, tackling him and not letting go. Now, I run out of breath climbing the stairs.

It began when I started vomiting and gradually feeling worse all the time. I was tired and out of breath. On November 10, 2015, my mother took me to the doctor. The doctor in New Canaan told us to get an X-ray immediately.

We went to Yale and my mom told me it would be a one night stay at the hospital. In the morning, the doctors said, “Oliver, you have cancer.” The one-night-stay turned into six months.

I am one of the very few (four percent) kids that have cancer. Some kids have deadly cancers that do not have a cure.

I know what it is like to have cancer and what treatments are like, too. This is the reason I am writing to you: to ask for more government funding to research childhood cancers. Funding that is more than what we raise selling tee-shirts and holding Walks for Life. Funding that goes directly to childhood cancers.
Currently, only four percent of cancer research funds go to childhood cancers, but in the future we can change that.

Now you see why it is so important for me and other kids with all forms of cancer, to have more funding for research for childhood cancer.’

Murphy then sent Oliver a from-the-heart, handwritten letter. It read:

‘Thank you so much for taking the time to write me on the importance of funding cancer research. I wanted to personally write you back because I am so impressed by your courage to stand up and fight for kids like you all across the country.

I agree that we need to dramatically increase federal money for cancer research. I am fighting hard to make this happen, and I can report that last year Congress was able to add $2 billion to the medical research budget. This is a big deal, but we can’t rest. I will work even harder now that I have your story to inspire me.

I cannot imagine what it must be like to have cancer as a kid, but I have two boys of my own (we like “O” names—our oldest is Owen) so I know what a terrible toll an illness can take on a small body.
I am so impressed by your story, and your bravery, Oliver. Keep fighting, and I promise to do my part so that when you have kids, cancer will be no more. — Chris’