Petaluma 11-year-old back on the football field after beating his toughest opponent

Jaden Cerda is a happy 11-year-old sixth grader at Corona Creek Elementary School. He is also a 95-pound defensive tackle for the Petaluma Panthers youth football team. Most of the offensive linemen he matches against on Sundays are “way bigger than me.”

None are bigger than the opponent he has already overcome, with the help of his family, medical professionals and community just to get onto the playing field.

The biggest battle of his young life began in the spring of 2019 when he noticed that he was always thirsty.

“I was drinking gallons of water every day,” he recalled.

He was also always tired and sleepy. When the symptoms persisted, his parents, Joe and Jihan Cerda, had their son tested, which led to an MRI.

The news wasn’t good. In super simplistic terms, Jaden had life-threatening brain tumors, one on his pineal gland and one on his pituitary gland. His young world changed. He didn’t face his challenge alone. His parents, older brother, Joey, and younger sister, Joya, were there for him through the ordeal ahead. As the battle continued, there were doctors, nurses, specialists and technicians on his team.

There was also a community of friends. As the word of Jaden’s diagnosis began to circulate, his football teammates, his teachers and classmates at Corona Creek and many others rallied to support him and his family.

There were cards, messages, food, rides in classic cars, police cars and fire trucks. There were well wishes from classmates, family friends and strangers To help the family, T-shirts, sweatshirts, face masks and mugs carrying the slogan “No One Fights Alone.”

“We were overwhelmed by the love of our community,” said Joe. “It was amazing. I can’t say enough about this community. It gave us the strength to get through this.

The tributes were more than sympathy. They were a sign of affection for a special young man and his family.

Said Casa Grande High School football coach John Antonio, “Jaden is just a happy kid. Through his struggles he was always on an even keel. I’ve never seen him mad or angry. He just sees life through different glasses. Everything is good.”

That same attitude is still reflected today, as Jaden recounted weekly chemotherapy treatments and platelet and red blood cell transfusions.

“The chemo would make me sick. I threw up a lot and sometimes the medicine made me sick, but I never felt really sick,” he said.

But he was sick, and his treatment included stays at Kaiser Hospital in Oakland where only his mother was allowed to be with him because of COVID-19 restrictions. Joe and brother, Joey, still found ways to keep in touch.

“My brother and dad would go up to the very top of the parking garage so I could see them through the window of my hospital room,” Jaden recalled.

Jihan is a wedding and portrait photographer, but when Jaden got sick her occupation changed.

“I became a full-time, at-home nurse,” she explained.

Jaden, like every other student, kept up with his studies via Zoom, but, of course, there were differences. As his treatment continued, there were times he “attended” class from the hospital and, there were times when their reminders of just how ill he was.

“The worst parts were throwing up and getting shots,” he said.

Unable to play football and other sports with friends, Jaden spent his time at home playing with his extensive collection of LEGOs, listening to funny music and, when in the hospital, playing black jack with the nurses.

“We played hundreds of games,” he said.

Not everything went exactly as planned.

Jaden was scheduled to spend six weeks receiving radiation treatment at the California Protons Therapy Center in San Diego, but as he his mother and 6-year-old Joya were preparing for the trip, they were told that the clinic’s proton beam wasn’t working and they were diverted to Cincinnati for a week for the first treatment.

“We had learned to adjust,” said Jihan.

After the session in Cincinnati, Jaden traveled back to San Diego for six weeks of treatment. His stay in San Diego turned out to be a trial for the family, but not so much for the patient. While Jihan and Joyia stayed with Jaden, Joe, who works as a private strength and conditioning coach, and Joey held down the home front.

“It was a situation of divide and conquer,” said Joe.

“It was fun,” said Jaden. “It was like having a road trip.” He was able to visit Marine World and other San Diego attractions and spent a lot of time playing on the beach. “I won my sister a stuffed animal,” he said.

During his fifth round of chemotherapy, he spent New Year’s in the hospital, but a happy ending was nearing. After his sixth round, there was a little set back when he developed a fever and four days later he was back in the hospital.

On Super Bowl Sunday morning he was cleared to come home and got to watch the game with his family.

The real winners were Jaden and his family. As of his last two MRIs, the tumors were gone.

Jaden is back home full time with his family, back in school and back playing the sport he loves. His treatment now includes only medication. He even had a chance to be ball boy for his favorite team, the Casa Grande High School Gauchos.