The father of a 16-year-old boy who died less than 24-hours after being diagnosed with leukemia believes his son may have had a better chance of survival if a blood test was carried out days earlier when he complained about back pain.
Kenneth Limper told DailyMail.com that his son, Kyle Limper, an honors student and all-around athlete who was captain of his high school football team, a wrestler, and track star, never missed a day of school and was never sick.
He started to complain of back pain on April 2 and when home remedies didn’t work Kenneth took him on April 8 to a medical facility near their Philadelphia home where a doctor gave him a muscle relaxer and anti-inflammatory drug.
Kenneth alleges no blood tests or X-ray were taken.
Kyle Limper died on April 13 less than 24 hours after doctors at St. Christopher’s Children’s Hospital diagnosed him with leukemia
Kyle’s parents, Kenneth and Jodi, were shocked to learn their son had been battling the cancer and had no idea that he was sick
He was selfless’: Family devastated after 16-year-old Pennsylvania teen dies from leukemia within 24 hours of being diagnosed after suffering from back pain following a basketball game. Kyle’s parents had no idea he was sick
He was taken to a hospital on the same day for a second opinion where two doctors diagnosed him with a lower lumbar strain, prescribed Tylenol and told him to put Lidocaine on his back and return if symptoms got worse.
Kenneth alleges that doctors again did not take blood tests or an X-ray.
Less than 72 hours later, Kyle was so weak he could barely stand or get out of bed so his family called 911.
The once fit student athlete was rushed to another hospital where a blood test and CT scan revealed he had leukemia.
His devastated father said Kyle’s kidneys were shutting down and he had masses all over his lungs.
Kyle went into cardiac arrest and sadly, died on April 13. Four days after his birthday. On April 9th, Easter Sunday, he had just turned 16.
‘My son didn’t last 24 hours at the hospital,’ Mr Limper told DailyMail.com.
‘The grief is crushing. I can barely sleep and when I wake up it starts all over again.
‘My son was a beautiful boy. He never got in trouble. He was going to Washington this summer to train with real CSI agents for two weeks. It was a dream for him.’
Kenneth said he remembers his son was alert at one point in the ICU. He was putting a cold rag on his head and telling him he loved him.
‘The doctors were doing CPR and chest compressions on him and I was holding his leg and his mother was in the room and we were screaming, C’mon Kyle,’ he recalled.
‘We watched our son die in front of our eyes. It was brutal,’ he said.
‘How do you recover from something like this. It is crushing grief … a sick feeling in your gut and chest.’
Kenneth described his son as a strong healthy kid who never had any illnesses. He and Jodi, Kyle’s mom had no idea their son was sick. Other than the achy back pain he was experiencing, his father said, he had no fever, he had an appetite and seemed like his Kyle.
Looking back, he said he can’t help thinking maybe if the hospital or the medical facility did more his son would be here today.
‘When you have a 16-year-old complaining of back pain maybe they should have checked his kidneys,’ he said.
‘It was nothing close to a back injury. His kidney’s were shutting down. Maybe if they did a blood test maybe they would have picked something up and he would still be with us but, now we will never be able to find out.’
The medical facility and first hospital did not respond to DailyMail.com’s request for comment while a spokesperson for the second hospital told DailyMail.com they do not release patient information.
Kenneth said he and Kyle’s mom had received numerous messages from other parents asking if Kyle had a blood test before he died. He doesn’t recall his son and and Kyle’s siblings – Kaitlyn, 21 and Justin, 16 – ever getting blood work at their yearly doctor visits.
They are now urging other parents to ensure their children have blood tests with their annual well-child check ups, believing that could have made a difference to their son’s chances of survival.
‘Parents are reaching out to us from all over the country,’ Kenneth said. ‘We want to bring awareness to please have your doctor run a blood test for your child’s annual check- up. You don’t wish this grief on anybody and the guilt you feel.’
Kyle’s mother, a cancer survivor who has been in remission wants ‘people need to know how beautiful talented kind and loving Kyle was and always will be.
‘He was Inspiring and devoted in everything he did and to everyone in his life. He loved to laugh and bring positivity to you,’ Jodi told DailyMail.com.
‘He shined so bright with his generosity and infectious smile. Kyle was pure love and joy. He was my beautiful bug ,my baby boy.’
Kyle was a straight A’s honor student. This summer he was supposed to go to Washington and study with CSI agents for a special-two week program that one of his teacher’s entered him in
According to the PA Chapter of The American Academy of Pediatrics, there are national guidelines for well-child check-ups which they recommend occur every few months form birth to age three and then yearly until they turn 21.
The check-ups examine if the child is meeting growth and developmental milestones for their age, their vision and hearing and overall health but does not typically involve blood tests, a spokesperson said.
A blood test for hemoglobin and lead may be conducted at ages 1 and 2; total cholesterol once between ages 9-11 and again between ages 17-19.
An HIV test is done once during adolescence. Chlamydia and gonorrhea yearly in sexually active females and males who have sex with males (urine not blood test).
Immunizations for childhood diseases and common conditions that affect children or young adults, such meningitis and HPV, are given.
Kyle’s parents are still waiting for the results of a bone marrow test to determine what type of cancer he had but the two most common types in youngsters are acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
In these cancers, white blood cells start to grow out of control inside the body before spreading to blood vessels and vital organs.
Kyle’s cancer most likely progressed rapidly because it inherits white blood cells’ ability to multiply rapidly, which is meant to only be deployed when they are fighting infections.
Dr Arif Kamal, the chief patient officer at the American Cancer Society, said patients could die from leukemia even within 24 hours of diagnosis because the cancer was fast growing and may only be caught in the late stages when it has spread.
He said in some types of leukemia — such as chronic leukemia — patients can have the disease for months or even years without having symptoms.
‘What I have seen is someone go for a physical and they are fine,’ he said.
‘But over the next week, they do not feel so great and they come back in and their white blood cell count is through the roof.’
‘Can those changes occur over a few days? Absolutely.’
Kyle Limper died April 13. Four days after his 16th birthday
Kenneth said his son was a straight A honor’s student and that this summer he was participating in a National Youth Leadership forum for Law and CSI at Columbia University in Washington, DC. A teacher had entered him into the program.
At his funeral last Tuesday, Kenneth said his son’s football team huddled around his casket and did a motivation cheer.
‘Seeing all these big guys breaking down and crying…. seeing how Kyle touched everybody was really moving.
‘So many of his friends told me how Kyle got them into lifting weights, got them into doing better in school, got them into reading comic books,’ he said.
He told DailyMail.com one of their favorite things he and Kyle did together was their weekly visits to the comic book store. He said his son was a collector.
‘We went every Sunday. We used to be in there for hours,’ he said. ‘That is one thing I am still going to do.’
He also recalled his son’s fondness for super heroes, particularly Batman. And, his dreams of wanting to go into law enforcement then joing the FBI or become a CSI agent.
‘He always wanted to fight the bad guys even as a kid,’ Kenneth said. ‘He wanted to stop all the bad evil in this world by putting all the criminals behind bars so people could live their best lives safely.’
He added: ‘That was Kyle always thinking about everyone else.’
On May 21st, the Kensington Alumni will be holding a dedicated football game in his son’s honor. And, his son’s high school Penn Treaty will be naming the gymnasium after him.
His football jersey- number 35 – will be signed by all his teammates and his coaches- and will be placed in a glass frame to be viewed by all and presented at an upcoming ceremony.
A GoFundMe has been created to help the family with support services for Kyle’s family and two siblings. As of Tuesday afternoon, $16,418 has been raised towards their goal of $25,000.