Delano Teen Who Battled Cancer Gives Current Patients Wireless Headphones
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – September is Pediatric Cancer Awareness month, and WCCO is checking in with a cancer warrior we've been following for years.
In 2017, Delano classmates wrote a song for Alex Weed, a teen battling Lymphoma. His friends welcomed him home the following summer, and they welcomed him back to school a year later.
Alex knows life can get tangled in the weeds. For him, it was cancer – it's been a grueling two years.
"It was pretty scary near my transplant days. My kidneys failed, I was really sick and I didn't know what would happen. So coming out on top is – feels really, really good," he said.
Alex, who just graduated high school, is in remission, but he'll be back in the hospital soon. He plans to become an oncology nurse.
"Kinda gone full circle now. The patient has become the nurse," Alex said.
But that's a few years off. In the meantime, he's leveraging his pain to help others in a unique way. He showed his former oncologist his plan: to give Beats wireless headphones to current patients. His organization is called One Less Wire.
"With three or four IVs or wires already hooked up to me, it was nice to try and eliminate one of those wires. And that's when I got a pair of wireless headphones and it like changed my life, which is kind of weird cause it's just a pair of headphones. But when you're hooked up to wires all the time, having that one less wire is really important," Alex said.
RELATED: Delano Student Returns To School After Battle With Lymphoma
"Whether it's music or video games – whatever the source may be – I think to provide that escape, it's an important thing and opportunity now that Alex is providing," said Dr. Nathan Gossai, Alex's former oncologist at Children's Minneapolis. "I think it's awesome. I'm a little worried that Alex is gonna make sure none of my patients can hear me while we're in the hospital."
Alex says zoning out is key when reality is harsh. With the help of family and board members, he handed off his first official bags, which also have Bite Squad vouchers and a mystery jelly bean flavor game, Bean Boozled.
"It's amazing. It's just so powerful when our patients who have been through the experience want to make the journey a little better for those who are coming behind them," said Barbie Hentges, director of development at Children's of Minnesota Foundation.
And that's what Alex is doing. With one less wire, he's helping other patients untangle life.
This is only the beginning for One Less Wire. Alex and his family plan to help many more patients. Alex is a die-hard Star Wars fan and has already gotten several donations from Skywalker Sound.
