Nicole Boik

Lucas' Birthday Party Nicole Boik

Lucas' Birthday Party is about a young boy that is in remission and is planning to have his first birthday party in two years as, the past two years, he was in treatment for cancer and unable to celebrate his birthday with a typical party outside of the hospital. Days before Lucas' birthday party, he has a follow-up CT scan that reveals his cancer is back- he relapsed. Lucas is rushed to the hospital and begins chemotherapy the following evening. Days and weeks pass with Lucas receiving harsh chemotherapy and going through surgery before he finally feels well enough to celebrate his birthday. Despite being in the hospital, he is able to use a fun space outside of his hospital room for all of his friends and family to celebrate with him, getting him as close as possible to the birthday party he had imagined. This celebration gives him the motivation he needs to keep fighting. This book identifies the various feelings that Lucas experiences prior to his CT scan (the "scanxiety"), once he's informed that he relapses, and as he goes through treatment again as a way of providing children in this position with a peer that they can relate to.