B.C. family faces 3-year respite funding wait to care for son with rare brain cancer – BC [Video]

Showing off his budding muscles and Christmas presents in his Surrey, B.C., home, Ansh is a five-year-old with big brown eyes, a bright smile, and a brave face.

Last spring, Ansh landed in BC Children’s Hospital with unusual symptoms. A battery of tests revealed the tragic news that Ansh has diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma, a rare, aggressive and incurable cancer of the brain stem. He received some radiation to slow its progress but has since been sent home.

As his condition slowly progresses, mom, Chintan Shah, and dad have become his full-time caregivers.

“I can’t leave Ansh alone,” his mother says. “He keeps on falling down and he’s having trouble swallowing. His speech is slurred. He’s mumbling.”

With Ansh’s twin brother to care for, bills to pay, and employment insurance running out, the family applied for respite care to relieve some of the pressure, but were told the waitlist was three years.

“I …