Conesville boy fighting cancer remains in good spirits

Leonard L. Hayhurst, Coshocton Tribune
·3 min read

CONESVILLE − An 8-year-old Conesville boy still has high spirits despite grueling treatments and a poor prognosis.

Andrew Miller, 8, is fighting cancer. He was originally diagnosed with lymphoma and high-grade glioma in November. However, doctors have recently discovered a tumor in his abdomen.
Andrew Miller, 8, is fighting cancer. He was originally diagnosed with lymphoma and high-grade glioma in November. However, doctors have recently discovered a tumor in his abdomen.

Andrew Miller has been fighting two forms of stage 4 cancer since they were discovered following a ruptured appendix in November. During the operation, the first cancer was discovered, lymphoma. Andrew complained of vision issues and a second tumor was found behind his eyes, high-grade glioma.

His father, Roman Miller, said Andrew is still undergoing treatments at Akron's Children Hospital. He's had 33 consecutive radiation treatments, and doctors have removed a tumor from his head and two from his stomach. However, a new tumor has grown in his abdomen and is being treated with chemotherapy. Roman said it can't be removed because it's connected to a main blood vessel.

"The doctors are still not giving us a good outlook on it. They're thinking we're on borrowed time with him. We're just praying to the Lord that he can still maybe survive this, but it's in the Lord's hands," Roman said. "The doctors are amazed that he's still with us. We've been blessed all around."

While Andrew has his good days and bad days, Roman said he's astounded by his young son's resilience and attitude.

"He seems to be holding the spirit real well. There are days he struggles pretty hard and he has days where he's giggling and in really good spirits," Roman said. "Same with us, there are days we struggle hard with it and there are days we are accepting it and dealing with it as we go."

A GoFundMe account for Andrew has closed, but the family currently has a donation page through the Christian site GiveSendGo. About $1,400 has been collected so far of a $10,000 goal to help fund a trip west. Planned stops include Yellowstone and other national parks.

The family looks to leave on July 21 and will be gone a month. Roman sold his tractor to purchase a motor home for the trip. Due to Andrew's condition and weaken immune system, staying in hotels isn't a good option.

"(Andrew) wanted to go west and we wanted to take him, because doctors are saying he probably won't be around very long," Roman said.

Previously, Wishes Can Happen of North Canton sent the family on a trip to Niagara Falls and Hershey's Chocolate World in Hershey, Pennsylvania.

Roman said the outpouring of support from the community has been tremendous. Several local organizations have held fundraisers and the family has received money, gas cards and more from various people and businesses. They thank everyone who has reached out to them with prayers and well wishes too.

"We never dreamed of having this much support," Roman said. "The community has prayed so much. People all over the world have been praying for that boy. All I can say, is that we're blessed people."

Leonard Hayhurst is a community content coordinator and general news reporter for the Coshocton Tribune with close to 15 years of local journalism experience and multiple awards from the Ohio Associated Press. He can be reached at 740-295-3417 or llhayhur@coshoctontribune.com. Follow him on Twitter at @llhayhurst.

This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Conesville boy fighting cancer remains in good spirits