In July 2022, an active and otherwise healthy eight-year-old, Justin, Jr. (JJ) Nixon, began to feel tired. His stomach distended and he started having nighttime accidents. Then his back pain began. Mom Brennae Rich was having no luck with over-the-counter pain medicine. At an urgent care center, they suggested that JJ was constipated and imaging was not considered at that time. Still with no relief, JJ then began vomiting. A visit to the pediatrician ordered basic scans, but it did not lead to a diagnosis.
At this point, Brennae was worried and frustrated. She knew her son was in pain, but no one seemed able to identify why. Finally, after a visit to the ER, more detailed imaging was done and a tumor was detected on his stomach, which had been pressing on his kidneys and ureter. The tumor was positioned in such a way that JJ was regularly retaining 3 liters of liquid. JJ was transported by ambulance with his mom Brennae and older sister Nyla to Johns Hopkins, where he was quickly admitted. Somewhere during this blur of an ER visit and ambulance trip, Brennae recalls hearing someone mention JJ having cancer. It all happened so fast that it didn’t entirely sink in.
Once JJ was admitted, the family met Hopkins pediatric oncologist Megan Zinsky, M.D., who recognized that there were many more questions than answers. Brennae understood JJ was very sick and had cancer, but many more tests were needed to identify the specific type of cancer he had in order to develop the proper treatment protocol. The family had to wait for ten days before JJ was diagnosed with Stage 3a Burkitt non-Hodgkins lymphoma. Burkitt lymphoma is a rare and highly aggressive B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), typically affecting the jaw, central nervous system, bowel, kidneys, or ovaries.
Six rounds of intense chemotherapy started immediately. JJ quickly became neutropenic, developed a fever, and had to be isolated to avoid potentially fatal sepsis. He could not easily drink water and developed mouth sores. Essentially, the chemotherapy had to be so strong to kill the cancer cells, that it nearly killed JJ himself.
JJ was unable to begin third grade in person. After months of treatment and a lot of pain, he endured more chemotherapy. JJ was finally cleared to begin in-person school on Valentine’s Day 2023. His class welcomed him with a celebration. He eased his way into going full-time in person throughout the Spring of 2023. During this time, JJ visited the Kennedy Krieger Institute, where specialists diagnosed him with ADHD, and have assisted the family with appropriate accommodations at school.
Cancer impacts the entire family, and in JJ’s case, it was no different. His extended family played, and continues to play, an important role in supporting him and his family. JJ’s treatment required Brennae to endure significant financial setbacks. As of Fall 2023, sister Nyla is in 6th grade and happy her brother is home and on the road to improved health. JJ has returned to school in person full-time. He is a terrific artist and energetic fact-sharer. He and his family traveled to the Kalahari Resort in Texas in October through Make-A-Wish. JJ currently receives monthly scans at Hopkins. His care remains under the treatment of Dr. Zinsky.
CCF met JJ in August 2023 in his role as one of the Giant Food Ambassadors for the 2023 Giant Food Pediatric Cancer Campaign. JJ and his family shared their journey at the campaign’s kickoff. JJ’s spirit was, and remains, inspirational.
