Born at only 28 weeks, Miles had a daunting journey in the NICU as a micro preemie. But what his parents didn’t expect was how soon afterwards that they would be back within hospital walls.

His family was away on vacation when his parents noticed something irregular when changing Miles. While initial reports seemed inconclusive, on their return home, his pediatrician sent them to the hospital straight away. Miles had a mass that could be cancerous.

Their worst fears were eventually confirmed  - the mass was cancerous, and spreading from his groin to his abdomen. To keep it at bay, they immediately began a rigorous chemotherapy plan, with radiation just around the corner.

“He was a miracle right from birth, already facing a health crisis,” said his mother Kim. “And so this was just one more notch in the stone for him. It was really hard to hear.”

Having just found out Kim was pregnant with their third child, Miles’ father, Luidgi, was the first to admit that they were wrecks. “It was just a whirlwind of emotions and timing - one of the worst days,” he said.

Worried how Miles would react to all of this, his father quickly saw him as a hero. He kept up his rambunctious jokester personality, allowing his family to draw strength from him. He knew his daily radiation routine by heart and almost put an excitement to it, waking his parents up; he was ready for whatever was in store.

“To a certain extent, Miles still doesn’t understand what he’s going through and what his journey has been,” says his father. Yet the stress of it all took a toll on Luidgi, and his own hair paid this price. But with a little encouragement from Miles, the solution was clear.

“I sport the look because of everything Miles went through,” he says. Drawing strength from his son yet again, Luidgi said, “He made me less insecure about my own hair.”

And after two months of radiation and nearly half a year of chemotherapy, they said, “We can smile about it now because the really hard part is hopefully over.” With his numbers going up, and clear scans, Miles has more than just returning to pre-k to look forward to… he’s getting a wish!

“Miles has been through so much… so for him to get an opportunity to wish, I was excited about the potential of what can happen,” said dad. “He deserves this. He deserves the world because he’s just been a beam of light through it all - so innocent.”

And as Miles’ wish is being uncovered, his family is excited about continuing to tell their story.

“One of the things we were nervous about when we first found out the diagnosis was how we would go about telling people,” said Luidgi. “But when we finally let it out, and started telling the story, so many other people had support.” Speaking on their continued desire of advocacy, Kim added, “It’s important to share stories like Miles’ because we definitely felt alone.”

Post-wish, this incredible family doesn’t foresee themselves going too far. “If we can be the hope and strength for somebody else going through it currently, we would love to give back in that way too,” says Kim.