Boy, 12, Thought He Had ‘Growing Pains’ From Playing Sports: It Turned Out To Be Cancer And As He Recovers, He’s ‘Walking In The Joy Of The Lord’

"I was on the basketball team when I was younger,” he said. “Just was playing sports, thinking it was growing pains, and eventually things did not seem right.”

Doctors eventually discovered that his right leg had a tumor in it and quickly began with treatment which included chemotherapy and limb salvage surgery.

“My right leg, which had the tumor in it, is pretty weak now,” the senior at Mississippi State University said. “They had to cut a few nerves and replace and reroute some muscle and soft tissues.

“So, the bracelet I wear now actually helps me pick up my ankle and support that stability in the whole leg, basically from the middle of my thigh to lower part of my shin is just all prosthetic knee joints now."

But despite all the hardship, Lizana had managed to lean into his faith to stay positive.

"Through surgeries and treatment, one thing that just kept pressing on my mind is you can either be down about it or you can choose joy,” he said. “So, I just choose to walk in the joy of the Lord instead of letting all that drag me down."

Today, the mechanical engineering student is sharing his story in honor of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and hopes to continue to raise awareness for cancer.

Understanding Sarcomas

The term sarcoma is used to describe an array of more than 70 rare cancers that begin in the bones and the soft tissues, such as muscles. This diverse group of diseases accounts for only about one percent of tumors in adults and just over 10 percent of tumors in children.

RELATED: What Are Sarcomas? Know the Types and Symptoms of These Rare Cancers

The main symptom of sarcomas is generally a slow-growing, painless mass, but symptoms can be hard to detect as soft tissue sarcomas are typically painless and bone sarcomas can be mistakenly diagnosed as orthopedic injuries.

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"Unfortunately, most sarcomas do not cause many of the symptoms that may be associated with other cancers," Dr. Dale Shepard, director of the Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Institute Phase I and Sarcoma Programs, tells SurvivorNet. "A mass the size of a golf ball or larger and growing should be evaluated as a potential sarcoma. It's important that patients who do have symptoms are not dismissive of them."

Types of Sarcoma Cancers

The word sarcoma refers to a large array of bone and soft tissue cancers, and individual cancers within that set go by unique names. Some of the types of sarcomas include:

• Ewing's sarcoma is a cancer that typically occurs in and around the bones, often in the arms or legs, or the bones of the pelvis. It most commonly occurs in children and young adults.
• Kaposi sarcoma is a very rare type of cancer that causes lesions on the skin, in lymph nodes, organs, and the mucous membranes of the mouth, nose, and throat. It typically affects people with compromised immune systems, such as those with HIV.
• Epithelioid sarcoma is a type of soft tissue cancer that grows slowly. It is likely to begin under the skin of areas like the finger, hand, forearm, lower part of the leg, or foot.
• Synovial sarcoma, also called malignant synovioma, is a cancer that can form in the soft tissues such as muscle or ligaments, commonly close to joints or in areas like the arm, leg, or foot.
• Osteogenic sarcoma, also called osteosarcoma, is the most common type of cancer that starts in the bones. This is the type of cancer Austin Lizana had.
• Spindle cell sarcoma is very rare, comprising as little as 2 percent of all primary bone cancer cases. It can start in the bone, often in the arms, legs, and pelvis, and usually occurs in people over 40.

Turing to Faith as a Cancer Survivor

Austin Lizana has been very open about how faith has gotten him through tough times. And for some people, turning to faith can be a great way to keep spirits high when cancer starts taking an emotional and/or physical toll.

Monica Layton, for example, also believes in the power of faith during a fight with cancer. She turned to her church congregation for support as she battled ovarian cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic and then went through recovery.

Ovarian cancer survivor Monica Layton shares how her church was her biggest support system

"[I've] gone to the same church for a long time, so it's like another family that really supports me," she told SurvivorNet in a previous interview. "We're Episcopalian, and when I was having surgery my priest came to the hospital and stayed and prayed with my family the whole time and it was a long surgery. And then he came back to the hospital every day to pray with me."

In addition to praying for her, Layton's church also sent flowers, cards and a prayer blanket and often visited her.

"They were so kind," Layton said. "I think my faith has been very important, crucial for me. Just the prayer really helps, I think."

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