JOPLIN, Mo. – When Noah Burnison made his grand entrance into art class on Wednesday, his classmates squealed in shock and excitement.

After all, it had been more than two weeks since the Kelsey Norman Elementary School fifth-grader — who was recently diagnosed with a rare form of lymphoma — had been in the building. Instead, he has been fighting the cancer head-on with chemotherapy treatments in Kansas City.

“It’s been hard for him,” said Noah’s mother, Breana Clark. “He’s 10, and most 10-year-olds should be worried about riding their bikes or playing outside, and he has to worry about taking his medicine and his next treatment. It’s not fair, but he’s doing the best he can.” 

Battling lymphoma

Up until recently, Noah was a “super healthy” fifth-grade student, his mother said. Over the summer, he noticed some bumps on his body and originally dismissed them as insect bites, but the diagnosis from Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City was much more severe: anaplastic large cell lymphoma.

Lymphoma is the most common blood cancer, with the two main forms being Hodgkin lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Cases occur when cells of the immune system called lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell, grow and multiply uncontrollably; travel to the lymph nodes, spleen, bone marrow, blood or other organs; and form tumors, according to the Lymphoma Research Foundation.

Anaplastic large cell lymphoma is a rare type of the cancer, representing about 1 percent of all non-Hodgkin lymphoma cases, the foundation said. Its causes are unknown, but it is not due to infection and cannot be passed to others, according to the Leukemia Foundation.

The good news, Clark said, is that the cancer is largely treatable and responds well to chemotherapy treatments, which Noah will have every third week for about six months. There is also a low risk of recurrence, she said.

But it has been difficult for him to be out of school. He has been gone from Kelsey Norman for all of October so far, and his mother is trying to arrange for him to complete his schoolwork on a special program the district has for homebound students.

“He may not even go back to school in what would look like a normal school setting this year, but he’s still part of Kelsey Norman,” she said.

‘A really good kid’

That’s why the Wednesday reunion was so important. It was clear that although he was happy to see his friends at school, Noah also was feeling tired. He used a wheelchair, and his voice was measured and faint when he spoke.

None of that mattered to his friends, many of whom wanted to hug him but were instructed instead to give him physical space. During his brief encounter with them, his classmates had a lot of questions: Has he been reading a lot while he’s been home from school? (The answer came quickly, to much laughter: No.) How is the food in the hospital? Does it feel weird not going to school? What does he miss most?

His teacher, Amanda Sauer, hadn’t told her class that Noah would pay them a visit because she wanted them to be surprised, but she admitted that it was hard to keep it a secret.

“He’s a really good kid,” she said.

Principal Julie Munn said it was good to see Noah, although she acknowledged that it was also tough because she could tell he wasn’t feeling well.

“But I’m glad he came, and for the kids — they were really excited to see him,” she said.

To help Noah and his family with medical expenses, Kelsey Norman classes are currently conducting a penny drive and soon will sell T-shirts designed by the fifth-graders. Similar projects are also underway at Columbia Elementary School, where Noah used to attend.

“He was always the kid who liked his alone time, but throughout this process, he has really valued his friends more and felt supported by his friends,” Clark said. “The messages and the cards help him get through.”

“It’s really amazing,” Clark said of the support her family has received. “It’s more than we feel like we deserve, and it’s amazing that this community has come together to hug us and give us support through this challenging time. Noah feels really special.”

Younker writes for The Joplin Globe in Joplin, Missouri.