Justin Whitaker, shown during North Stafford High baseball practice, is recovering from cancer. File/

Justin Whitaker, who is recovering from cancer, gets help once a week at his home with his science assignments from North Stafford teacher Aaron Elser. File/

Popular North Stafford student rebounds quickly after bone-marrow transplant

Date published: 1/7/2008

By CATHY DYSON

After cancer almost killed him and a bone-marrow transplant left him weakened for weeks, Justin Whitaker has one thing to tell people.

"You should never give up," the 18-year-old said.

The North Stafford student has been the poster child of positive thinking since he was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer called T-cell lymphoma in June 2006.

After initial treatments, he fought his way back onto the school's varsity baseball team.

Friends called him "Superman" because of his physical and mental toughness, and the way he worked so hard to follow his dream of playing baseball.

In August 2007 the cancer returned, and Justin needed regular transfusions to stay alive. A bone-marrow transplant was his only hope, and an anonymous donor was a perfect match.

Even after the Nov. 15 operation, his father, Craig, wasn't sure his son would make it. For weeks Justin didn't move, was heavily drugged and was fed through a tube.

Then the transplanted marrow began to do its job, and Justin's red-blood-cell count increased. The teenager was on his feet and out of Children's Hospital before Christmas, in half the normal recovery time.

"I'm pretty positive the cancer's gone," Justin said during a telephone interview. "I'm happy."

His father cautioned that he's still in critical condition through the end of February. Justin's immune system will remain weakened until 100 days have passed, and he must limit where he goes and whom he's around.

That's probably been the hardest part for the popular teen. Friends have cheered him on through the ordeal, and school and community groups have raised money to help with overwhelming expenses.

Justin's girlfriend, Court-ney Crews, has rarely left his side. She and her parents gave Justin a letterman's jacket to go with the letter he earned in baseball.

Justin spent New Year's Eve with his father and brother, Jordan, in North Stafford. He's been recovering at the home of his grandparents, Barbara and Darrell Whitaker of Springfield. They're able to care for him daily while his father works, and they take him to Children's Hospital for checkups twice a week.

So for now, Justin is watching a lot of TV and playing video games. And he's focused on his next goal: returning to school by March and graduating with his class in June.

Donations can be sent to the Justin Whitaker Cancer Fund at North Stafford High School, 839 Garrisonville Road, Stafford, Va. 22554.

Date published: 1/7/2008

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