When Everett was 18 months old, he became very sick, vomiting every day. He lost so much weight, you could see all his ribs, and, because of that, a mysterious bump on his rib too. During an appointment with his pediatrician in Lethbridge about that illness, the doctor also took a closer look at the bump and referred him to a local orthopedic specialist to be further assessed. That bump turned out to be a benign growth on his rib. Then, when he was three years old, another showed up on Everett’s wrist. That year this specialist in Lethbridge diagnosed him with Multiple Hereditary Exostosos, sometimes called “bumpy bone disease” and performed Everett’s first operation to remove it and correct his arm that had bowed because of it and other growths she found on his wrist. That operation, however would not be his last.
Since then, he has had eight more operations at the Alberta Children’s Hospital and the 20 incision scars to prove it, all over his body. Though benign, the tumours cause pain and problems with his growth. Since he’s still a growing young man, pediatric orthopedic surgeon Dr. Carmen Brauer, in collaboration with general and plastic surgery teams, removes these tumours whenever they cause him pain or are leading to issues with his bone development and alignment – because as his bones grow, the tumours grow with them. Two years ago, he needed screws put in his ankles to fix his alignment and needed physiotherapy to relearn how to properly walk, without his ankles rolling in. In November 2023, the screws were removed and at the same time doctors fixed his alignment in his knees by placing eight plates in his knee. This past December, those plates were removed. He anticipates he will need a bone lengthening procedure in the future after a tumour caused his leg to bow. His next will be to remove growths on his knuckles.
The time between operations have been as little as six months and as much as three years. Despite this, Everett and his family have tried to keep a positive attitude, feeling thankful they have these amazing specialists at the Alberta Children’s Hospital as their lifeline. And his condition doesn’t slow him down. Everett is athletic, a huge hockey fan, and plays volleyball. He loves coming to the hospital and asks to stay overnight even if he’s there for a day surgery so he can play video games.
