Father urges mom and sick boy to come back
Father urges mom and sick boy to come back
The father of a 13-year-old boy whose family has refused treatment for his cancer is urging his son and wife to come back, after neither of them showed up for a court appearance.
A Minnesota judge issued an arrest warrant Tuesday for the mother of Daniel Hauser after she and the boy did not attend a court hearing. A judge had scheduled the hearing to review an X-ray ordered by the court to assess whether the boy’s Hodgkin’s lymphoma was worsening.
The boy’s father, Anthony Hauser, testified at the hearing that he last saw his wife at the family’s farm on Monday night, when she told him she was going to leave “for a time.”
He later told a reporter that he would like his wife and son to return.
“I’d like to tell them, you know, ‘Come back and be safe and be a family again,’ ” he said. “That’s what I’d like to tell them.”
District Judge John R. Rodenberg of Brown County, Minnesota, said that the boy’s “best interests” require him to receive medical care. His family opposes the proposed course of treatment, which includes chemotherapy.
“It is imperative that Daniel receive the attention of an oncologist as soon as possible,” the judge wrote.
During the hearing, Dr. James Joyce testified that he saw the boy and his mother on Monday at his office. He said the boy had “an enlarged lymph node” near his right clavicle and that the X-ray showed “significant worsening” of a mass in his chest.
In addition, the boy complained of “extreme pain” at the site where a port had been inserted to deliver an initial round of chemotherapy. The pain was “most likely caused by the tumor or mass pressing on the port,” testified Joyce, who called the X-ray “fairly dramatic” evidence that the cancer was worsening.
Rodenberg ordered custody of the boy transferred to Brown County Family Services and issued a contempt order for the mother.
A call to the family’s home in Sleepy Eye, Minnesota, was not immediately returned.
Philip Elbert, Daniel’s court-appointed attorney, said he considers his client to have a “diminished capacity” because of his age and the illness and believes Daniel should be treated by a cancer specialist.
Elbert added that he does not believe Daniel — who, according to court papers, cannot read — has enough information to make an informed decision regarding his treatment.
Daniel’s symptoms of persistent cough, fatigue and swollen lymph nodes were diagnosed in January as Hodgkin’s lymphoma. In February, the cancer responded well to an initial round of chemotherapy, but the treatment’s side effects concerned the boy’s parents, who then opted not to pursue further chemo and instead sought out other medical opinions.
Court documents show that the doctors estimated the boy’s chance of five-year remission with more chemotherapy and possibly radiation at 80 percent to 95 percent.
But the family opted for a holistic medical treatment based upon Native American healing practices called Nemenhah and rejected further treatment.
In a written statement issued last week, an attorney for the parents said they “believe that the injection of chemotherapy into Danny Hauser amounts to an assault upon his body, and torture when it occurs over a long period of time.”
Medical ethicists say parents generally have a legal right to make decisions for their children, but there is a limit.
“You have a right, but not an open-ended right,” Arthur Caplan, director of the center for bioethics at the University of Pennsylvania, told CNN last week. “You can’t compromise the life of your child.”
May 20, 2009 @ 12:18:19
While the whole matter is disturbing, I find it also disturbing that the 13yo boy cannot read… He is certainly old enough that he should know how to read already.
May 20, 2009 @ 13:48:19
Darwin, maybe he will pass before he reproduces.
May 20, 2009 @ 13:53:31
Parents should not be able to deny their children medical care because of religious beliefs. It’s just as insane witnessing a car wreck in the middle of no where and doing nothing. Last year a mother was arrested because she and the cult that she was a member of starved her son to death because he wouldn’t say Amen before he ate. This is the what happens when you let extremist religious belief or homeopathy dictate care for children.
May 20, 2009 @ 15:23:42
This mom and dad make me sick. When their son dies they should both be thrown in jail for murder. Give them some horrible disease that is treatable but withhold treatment and broadcast them suffering so the rest of the ignorant relgious nuts can see what its like.
May 20, 2009 @ 15:24:10
i believe as a parent you should have the decision to decide whats best also as someone who has been thru cancer and done the extensive research chemo and radiation is not always the answer , i opted for a complete mastectomy and refused all chemo and radiation so far a survivor, if the boy nor the mother wants chemo then rather than the courts intervening as they are say ok what are your other options and what is your plan for this boy because religion aside he could go thru cell replacement or even transfusions, when religion starts playing a part in this and the childrens lives are being endangered by refusal to do anything yes someone needs to protect his best interests, and father pleading bullshit he knows where they are.
May 20, 2009 @ 17:17:55
I’m sick of it. Let the kid be dead already, and the mother placed in Prison for the rest of her life, chained to a wall till she dies!!
May 20, 2009 @ 17:22:08
Let the kid die already!!! who cares about him….really. if his own parents want to watch him die, who are we to step in and say you cant do that!! it’s gods plan for this kid to suffer and die.
May 20, 2009 @ 17:27:16
How can the governement tell a person what medical care he should get? I simply can not believe a warrant has been placed on a woman who wants to choose how to care for a sick son,; I smell a rat; the rat being the medical establishment who does not want ANYONE to question their methods. Methods that make them alot of money. How much sway does the medical establishment have on our politicians and laws?? Apparantly alot of sway when you are called a criminal because you disagree with a greedy doctor’s advice. This truly must be unconstitutional to force a certain type of medical “care” on someone. If they prescribed bloodletting like in the middle ages and you refused were you a criminal with a warrant for your arrest? This scares me, thought this was a free country……
May 20, 2009 @ 17:51:51
I think that people need to know a bit about the type of cancer this child has. Hodgkin Disease is very curable with chemotherapy and radiation >5 yr life expectancy 95% with a good chance at a cure (80-85%). Without it, doctor suggest that he has a <5% of surviving 5 years. Chemotherapy and radiation are the only treatments for this disease. While surgery works for some forms of cancer (e.g., some breast, kidney), it is not an option in this case. I guess the fundamental question is does a parent choose to deny this type of care. I’m left wondering if they saw the effects of the first treatment and decided against it. There are times that parents make their children do hard things because it is important. Personally, I’d put this into that category. I’m also left wondering if learning to read was also put into the category of he didn’t want to do it. I do find it interesting that the family practices Catholicism (which clearly supports treatment) but now holistic medical treatment based upon Native American healing practices called Nemenhah.
May 20, 2009 @ 17:53:27
To all of you who think that the “treatment” for Hodgkins Lymphoma is guaranteed, you are naive! Most patients will survive… as long as you look at the “5 year survival rate.” The problem is that there isn’t much data after that, and for those who survive the treatment, many will have horrible side effects later in life, including cancer caused directly by the treatment for this cancer. The government has NO RIGHT to tell any parent whether or not to treat their child or worse, how they must be treated or the parent will be sent to jail. If they want to pass a law that says you can go to jail for not treating your child if or when the child dies then they should pass that law, not use the courts to force a certain type of treatment and the harass the family when they don’t comply. By the way, anyone who is out there who supports a woman’s “right” to abortion but says they should be able to force this woman to treat her son is a flaming hypocrite. Just consider this a very late term abortion. Notice I didn’t bring up religion at all, this is not about religion, this is about liberty… The government has no right to interfere in your personal life and force you to do something and yes that does include wearing seat belts, or helmets or whatever else the safety and security Nazi’s come up with. By the way, I faced this same situation when my son was 10 months old, and I would have chosen treatment if it had come to that (he was found to be clear of lymphoma after a week in the hospital), but that doesn’t mean that I feel I have the right to force that on anyone else.
May 20, 2009 @ 17:58:05
It always amazes me the number of folks that believe everything is a government conspiracy. (So dramatic) This boy can’t even read, for crying out loud. What measures have these parents done to correct that issue? These are the same parents you want to make a decision regarding a life threatening illness and methods of treatment? That doesn’t even make sense. I wonder how many Native Americans diagnosed with this type of cancer would opt for this cultural holistic approach? My guess is most of them would be flooding their veins with chemo. The father needs arrested for obstruction of justice if he’s not willing to cough up any and all locations the mother and boy might be. If this boy dies, I sincerely hope justice will prevail. I’m not big on capital punishment, but if he dies because his parent’s are dimwits, then no punishment is too severe. Parents do whatever it takes to protect their children and preserve their life. THAT’S a parents job and responsibility. There should be no argument.
May 20, 2009 @ 18:03:26
Here is a case where government trips all over itself and the media picks the ball up and runs – in the wrong direction. I live in a city where medical help was not offered to a homeless family because the facility offering pro bono assistance was over capacity. A woman arrived with a baby needing minor medical assistance and she was unable to get it. No government agency stepped in and insisted that the child be attended to by a physician and no media outlet covered the lack of medical attention. So how then, is this story more news worthy? And what criteria sorted this child out as requiring mandatory help? Was it the severity of his illness? If so, then the child who needed help but none was offered just needs to get sicker to get governmentally mandated assistance. Do I have this right?
May 20, 2009 @ 18:12:57
Why cant a 13 year old read? is this some sort of religious homeschooling thing to go with the kooky medication treatment BS?
May 20, 2009 @ 18:27:50
It is not up to the state to decide what treatment is best for their son. They are treating him with alternative medicine and are not keeping him from a treatment. The court needs to stay out of this. This child has his own opinion and feelings . He has said he doesn’t want Chemo. So leave him alone it is not abuse or neglect just because it is not what a medical Dr. recommends. Enough already. This is the first step to take away the beliefs of the church. To force people into doing what they think is best. We will pray for this child.
May 20, 2009 @ 19:13:26
Hey Kid….. die already, and put us out of our misery!
May 20, 2009 @ 19:18:08
I have a problem with this whole story. The laws of this country allow the mother to decide if the child is killed while still in the womb but then removes the right for a parent to make medical choices based on beliefs and past experience? I don’t get it. Now the government is going to start telling us how we treat our children? That is completely insane. Alternative methods do work. The little boy may have begged his mom not to make him have another treatment after the one in February. I know people who said they would not insist it with their worst enemy. It is the families choice and doctors, law and government need to stay out of it.
One news person likened it to leaving her son injured and bleeding on the side of the road after a traffic accident. This is certainly not the same as making a personal decision as to how to face the child’s illness.
May 20, 2009 @ 19:18:54
I think that the mother should make the decision for the child if the child feels okay with it but she must explain the reprecausions of his decision. To choose to die of cancer as an adult is your decision but in order to make that decision as a child it needs to be explained. I think that is what we are supposed to teach our children isn’t it. The choice to make there on decision. Right? Or are we just supposed to make them for them and teach them that mommy and daddy is always supposed to make decisions for you. Also if you have a religion where you don’t believe in a treament and your child is dying of cancer and there is a treatment don’t force that child to make the same decision in religion that you did. Children should learn how to make there own decision or they will be stuck when they get out into the real world but as far as the government coming into play i have a quote for them sense there almighty and knowing on how to raise your children for you “If you think you can do a better job at raising my children that the almighty lord gave me to raise then by all means try”. I think that the mother and the government have both a positive and a negative view on the whole thing but like i said before all in all it should be the childs decision on whether or not he wants the treatment or whether he just wants to live life to the fullest as long as he can.
May 20, 2009 @ 19:26:10
By the way Neitzsche you are a very cruel person to say what you said about that child. Mabye you should go ahead and die already and put us out of our misery. People like you make me sick. So have a nice life without having anyone in it because your racist and outrageous views. You know your going to be alone in the end because your heartless. Right? And u thought you were the only one with balls enough to say anything out of the way and outrageous to somebody. You really really make me sick. I hope you do write and tell me about myself because coming from someone like you i don’t personally care and i still know im way better than you you sick human being.
May 20, 2009 @ 20:21:38
When I was 13 years old I had a severe spine curature (scholiosis.) If I had known what was going to happen to me during and post surgery, I would have be so frightened that I would have said “no.”
I did not have the choice.
If I did not have the surgery I would have most likely died from heart/lung compression from my ribs crushing my heart and lung. Or even if I had not died from that, my condition would have been significantly more debilating than it is now.
It is possible that treatment would kill this boy before the cancer would. But he deserves the best he can get.
Sure, it is also possible that he could survive without the treatment, but I wonder what other than death, he and his parents would have to live with.
Most people do not want others to suffer, so I can understand how his mother and others, might feel.
May 20, 2009 @ 20:30:12
There are several issues at work in this story, a few of which I’d like to address:
First, as Kirsty correctly points out, the definitive treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma in children is chemotherapy +/- radiotherapy, with a 5-year survival of 90-95%, and cure rate of over 80%.
Matt is incorrect in assuming that there are no studies of treatment outcomes after 5 years; there are, in fact, many excellent studies looking at long-term survival and side effects (such as secondary cancers). The main reason the 5-year mark is chosen, is that 5 years after completion of therapy, the residual mortality rate from the primary cancer is very low (<5%).
The only reason that the courts have stepped into this case is specifically because the outcome of conventional medical treatment is so good in childhood Hodgkin’s disease. The judge specifically stated that if the prognosis were poor, he would allow the family to choose whatever treatment they wanted. But with the decision the family has made, to go with “Nemenhah” therapy, it is extremely likely that Daniel will die within the year.
This issue isn’t about freedom of religion, it’s about the limitations that parents have when the decisions they make for their children will inevitably lead to a child’s harm and/or death.
Matt, there ARE laws already in place to deal with this issue: look up your state’s laws on child endangerment and neglect. These laws are merely being properly enforced by the courts in this case.
Cindy, I’m glad to hear you’ve beaten your breast cancer with surgery alone, but unfortunately, Hodgkin’s disease cannot be treated this way. It is a cancer of the blood-forming cells in the bone marrow; transfusions won’t cure him, and for bone marrow transplant to occur, you first have to eliminate the primary cancer with chemo.
Sean F, this case has nothing to do with doctors getting rich. As I mentioned, it’s about protecting the life and well-being of a child who (a) is not mature enough to make informed decisions about his own care, and (b) whose parents are making decisions that will certainly kill him if appropriate treatments are not given.
I’m absolutely sure that these parents care very much for their child, and believe they are doing the right thing. Unfortunately, the weight of medical, legal, and ethical evidence is strongly against them, which is why the courts must intervene.
Nietsche and Steve: your comments are vulgar and don’t deserve responses.
PS: According to some news reports, Daniel is unable to read at age 13 not because of neglect on the part of his parents, but rather due to a learning disability; this isn’t anyone’s fault.
Also, has anyone noticed that “Nemenhah” spelled backwards is Hahnemen? Samuel Hahnemann was the German doctor who came up with the (completely nonsensical) concept of homeopathy in the 1700s… coincidence?
May 20, 2009 @ 20:39:07
realitychick wrote: “One news person likened it to leaving her son injured and bleeding on the side of the road after a traffic accident. This is certainly not the same as making a personal decision as to how to face the child’s illness.”
Actually, it’s almost exactly the same… more precisely, it’s like a child being involved in a traffic accident, with multiple fractures and organ injuries, and his parents saying, “I’ll use herbal remedies to cure him.” This isn’t a “personal decision”, it’s child endangerment and neglect, simply because there are proven methods of treatment that work in the vast majority of cases.
May 20, 2009 @ 21:02:05
I do respect her desision and I hope she saves her son from “big pharma + government maney making on people’s life” monsters. This is a war against health- forcing drugs and vaccines, especially on our children. Chemo therapy kills healthy cells- this cannot be good for anyone. Wake up!
May 20, 2009 @ 21:17:50
outof wrote: “Chemo therapy kills healthy cells- this cannot be good for anyone. Wake up!”
Newsflash: CANCER kills PEOPLE… chemotherapy kills cancer. Wake up!
This is the part that really bothers me: people like outof rail on treatments like chemotherapy and vaccinations (which have extensive, provable track records of saving literally tens of millions of lives), but don’t provide any alternatives with comparably good results. Natural therapies? C’mon… show me the evidence!
Nobody is saying that chemo is a perfect solution. Yes, it has side effects. Yes, it may cause health problems ten years later. But the fact is, it can give you those ten extra years in a large number of cases, for patients who would otherwise be dead in months.
May 20, 2009 @ 21:33:21
Would you be okay with me deciding to not feed my child ever because of religious reasons or to only feed the child one type of thing every day? You would want to take the child away from me because I would be endangering the life of the child. I see no difference between denying a child essential health care and denying a child food.
May 20, 2009 @ 22:02:07
Dear Hillary, I’m so happy to see that you are so well educated. Your command of the English language is astonishing. And, what a sense of humor you possess….. it’s almost equal to my dead mothers’! Wherever did you get the Idea that my comments were racist? I never mentioned color, or the kids religion or anything but the obvious stupidity of the situation. Here we have a mentally disturbed, religious freak who because of her beliefs will allow her own flesh & blood to die…. Does that make sense to you? Perhaps religion has, unfortunely, touched and twisted your mind too. I’m not the evil one here…. This mentally damaged mother, and her “HOME SCHOOLED” 13 year old, who CAN’T YET READ, more than likely in attempt to prevent the child from learning what he needs to learn in order to live a successful life in the 21st century is the evil one. My using humor to point out this failure caused by religious indoctination must be way above your own intellectual abilities to see reality. Sorry about that. That’s not my fault either. and that also does not make me evil. As far as you thinking you’re a better human than I am, that is just another indication of one of your flaws, and a major flaw of our entire population! No one human is better than any other human, That’s a fallacy. We’re all born with the same potential…. How we’re educated, and the surroundings we’re brought up in all contribute to how we turn out as adults. We all see the world from our own points of view, Some people are willing to say what needs to be said, some aren’t. I’m proud to say that I’m one of the people who says what needs to be said. I see no need to pull punches, and I don’t believe in political correctness. if this mother cares so little about her offspring so as to allow him to die………….. why should I or anyone else really care? False concern for people you don’t even know is just that…. FALSE! By the way, and I really need to point this out….both my Father and my Brother have suffered from and been cured of Hodgkins disease, two different versions of it, and both of them were cured by Chemotherapy….. with no radiation. So I have had some experience with this particular subject. My Brother is still alive 12 years after, and cancer free. And my father lived to a ripe old age of 82 after he was cured……. But, you have to take the cure. Some magic Daddy up in the sky isn’t going to do it for you!
May 21, 2009 @ 08:45:53
There are many ways to treat and deal with cancer. More and more research is coming up with natural ways to deal with cancer and increase your longevity. As a previous cancer survivor, I will tell you I will never again under go chemotherapy. I think it is up to the child and the family to decide what is right for them.
May 21, 2009 @ 20:17:06
My aunt died of cancer just recently. She refused to do chemo because of what it physically did to her. It left her weak, more sick than ever and yet she did not get 100% gaurantee from doctors that it will cure her. She refused chemo and just wanted to die peacefully with her family. This child may not be able to read…but he has feelings. If he feels that chemo is not for him and refuses it, then let the boy be! His parents are treating him the best they know and believe…therefore, not neglecting him. It saddens me that this boy is slowly dying and on the run because the goverment forced them away. This is the time where he needs to be home, comforable and be with his family… the stress alone of having to run away from authorities will kill this child!!! he will die not of cancer but of sadness, depression, and exhauastion! If the child refuses chemo, then donate this services to a child who has cancer and needs chemo but cannot afford to get it!!! Please allow the child and his mom to go back home…peacefully…this is heartbreaking.