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Nova Scotia native Brandon MacKenzie, 10, began treatment for a brain tumor more than a month ago. The treatment involves being bolted to a table under a radiation mask, so the radiation can stay targeted on a specific part of his brain and not damage any other part of it. The description alone sounds terrifying for anyone, let alone a child. Luckily, MacKenzie got some helping hands along the way, including one from his real-life hero.
Earlier this year, staff at the Queen Elizabeth II hospital in Halifax starting painting the radiation masks to help their pediatric patients get through the stressful treatments. Nature scenes, flowers, animals… anything a child requested the staff made it happen. For his, Brandon MacKenzie chose his favorite wrestler, Rey Mysterio:
MacKenzie’s treatment was first brought to public attention by his cousin, Reddit user judohippo. From there, word spread through the forum board and into the wrestling community, eventually making it all the way to Mysterio himself.
He responded with a phone call of encouragement, and sent along a mask that matched the design MacKenzie chose for his radiation mask. MacKenzie told the Chronicle Herald that Mysterio said, “We’re going to do this like a tag team. I have your back, and we’re going to do this together.”
From Reddit:
This act of kindness made my cousin so happy that rest of his treatments seemed like a breeze. I think the thing that inspired my cousin the most was when Rey called him and told him that “together we will 619 and 902 that tumor together”
Treatments finished about 2 weeks ago. We now need to wait a another few for him to have a CT scan to see if they have helped but we are hopeful!.
Pro wrestling matters to so many people in so many different ways, and it’s always amazing to see the kind of positive impact it can have people’s lives.
