The field of medicine is an ever evolving art. This is why cures for such illnesses as AIDS, HIV, and many types of cancers remain a mystery. For this Coloradan boy, the cure for his illness remains a mystery as well.
In fact, ten-year-old Jaiden Rogers’s condition is so rare that his was the 41st case to ever be recorded. What he suffers from is a condition which slowly covers the body in rock-like lesions, turning the skin quite literally into stone.
It’s called stiff-skin syndrome.
“It started as small little patch and it spread all over,” Jaiden’s mom Natalie said. “They’re trying to slow it down as much as it can, until we can find something.”
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Jaiden’s parents recalled having first noticed something was wrong under their son’s skin three years ago. “It’s like little marbles and some of it is flat and hard,” said Natalie.
These patches soon began to spread.
“Literally, it’s turning him to stone,” she said. “He’ll be entombed in himself if we can’t find something.” Jaden’s father Tim said that touching his son’s leg is like tapping on a counter top.
Jaiden’s doctors have used steroids, immune-suppressant drugs, and light therapy, but nothing has worked. Now they have resorted to chemotherapy to slow the growth of the lesions.
And the side effects of his medication have been devastating. Jaiden’s is now confined to a wheelchair, uses an oxygen tank, and is no longer going to school.
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“He’s very outgoing,” said Natalie, “but he’s on so many meds, most of the time he’s tired and strung out.”
No definitive treatment for stiff-skin syndrome has been discovered yet, but the doctors are not giving up.
Jaiden’s parents have decided to go public with their son’s condition to help raise awareness to the rare condition, and to help finance Jaiden’s ever growing medical bills, the Rogers have set up an online funding campaign that anyone can donate to.
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