At age 11 and entering his final years at middle school, Landon Motter was due a growth spurt.
So when, in the summer of 2023, he began suffering an ache in his hip, doctors dismissed it as growing pains.
The family, from Maryland, had originally linked the pain to go-karting, which they had done plenty of on the trip.
But as summer wore on and Landon started school, the pain became so excruciating that he would wake up crying in the middle of the night. During soccer practice, his parents noticed he was limping.
A bone biopsy revealed stage four blood cancer that had spread to his hip bones.
Landon Motter of Maryland was 11 (left) when he was diagnosed with a rare form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma called anaplastic large cell lymphoma
Leading up to his diagnosis, Landon (shown here) was an active middle schooler who played soccer. However, severe cramps left him limping and unable to sleep at night
Landon’s mother, Courtney Anderson, 32, told TODAY.com: ‘I was completely devastated.’
‘Hearing the word cancer, your mind just goes completely blank. I’m like “Oh my gosh, what is his life going to look like after this? Is he going to survive?”‘
Landon’s diagnosis came amid a mystery rise rise of childhood cancers like leukemia and lymphoma in the US.
Experts have theorized the trend may be being driven by environmental exposures like antibiotics, air pollution and ultra-processed foods.
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When the pain started waking Landon up in the middle of the night and leaving him unable to play soccer, his parents realized it may have been more than growing pains.
‘We were giving him Motrin basically around the clock. As soon as it would wear off, he would be crying,’ Ms Anderson said.
‘Once he started waking up in the middle of the night when his Motrin would wear off, we were like, “This is definitely more than growing pains. There’s no reason why he should be awoken from his sleep from that type of pain.”‘
After being dismissed by the pediatrician, Landon’s parents took him to a sports medicine doctor, who took x-rays that came back normal.
An oncologist at Children’s National Hospital in Washington DC ran blood tests, which also showed no abnormalities.
However, the family refused to take no for an answer and sought out more specialists.
A rheumatologist then performed a bone biopsy, which discovered stage four anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL), a rare form of blood cancer.
The cancer, which attacks the lymphatic system, likely evaded blood testing because lymphoma cells do not circulate in the blood in high enough numbers for blood tests to detect them.
Landon’s father, Blake Motter, told TODAY.com: ‘We went through like five to seven different doctors until we did the bone biopsy.’
‘[It was] just absolutely devastating. It’s tough. When you hear cancer, you just immediately assume your kid’s going to die.’
ALCL occurs when disease-fighting white blood cells attack the lymphatic system, a group of organs and tissues like bone marrow and lymph nodes which help the immune system fight off threats.
This graphic highlights some of the lesser known signs of cancer in children, including early/late puberty, developmental delays, slow growth, slow recovery from bone injuries, limited or abnormal facial movement and hearing problems
Landon, shown here getting his first post-chemo haircut, is now cancer-free and in seventh grade. He plans to stay active and play football and soccer
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma affects about 800 American children per year, and about one in 100 are diagnosed with Landon’s subtype. And like with Landon, most children are diagnosed in later stages, as the symptoms can mask other common conditions.
He underwent six rounds of chemotherapy, all of which required him to stay in the hospital for at least five days at a time. Though he told his parents the hospital made him ‘stir crazy,’ he never complained.
‘He just knew this was something he had to do in order to save his life,’ Ms Anderson said.
It’s unclear what caused his disease, though experts estimate that children like Landon get lymphoma from genetics or a weakened immune system.
As of this spring, Landon is cancer free, though he still has to receive regular checkups to check if the disease has returned. It’s estimated that one in 10 patients like Landon will relapse at some point.
Now 12, he has started seventh grade and plans to go out for the football team.
‘Really, for Landon, this was just a bump in the road, and physically he’s feeling great,’ Ms Anderson said.
