Ryan Reynolds Surprises Child Receiving Cancer Treatment at Mass. General
Ryan Reynolds provided an incredible surprise to a young boy currently receiving cancer treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital.
On Friday, Sept. 20, the Deadpool actor visited Nash, an eight-year-old who’s being treated for rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare form of cancer that develops in muscle tissue. Nash’s mother, Angie Poirier, helped set up the awesome moment for her son, who wears a radiation mask decorated to look like Deadpool. She wrote on X (formerly Twitter), “Ryan Reynolds and I have followed each other on Twitter for years. Sent him a pic of Nash’s custom ‘Deadpool’ radiation mask, he replied he wanted to come meet him in Boston. We kept it a surprise for Nash. Thank you for this memory Ryan!”
The moment was captured and shared by Mass. General on Facebook. Nash looked truly stunned to be visited by Reynolds, who was every bit as charming as you’d expect him to be. At one point during the video, Reynolds tells Nash, “Everything you’re going through, that is a lot for an eight-year-old-kid to shoulder. I hope you know that. That is serious stuff … You’ve got what’s called ‘mettle’ … It’s grit…Everything you’re going through, I promise you, is going to be incredibly useful.”
As if that wasn’t enough, Reynolds’ visit also included a FaceTime call with Hugh Jackman. He can be heard in the clip below saying, “It is so nice to meet you Nash, and tell Ryan to stop calling me.” Reynolds retorted, “It’s true. I badger him all the live-long day.”
Reynolds shared on social media about his visit, “Massive thanks to the medical staff at @mghfc for devoting your life to this work. Ffs, I know it isn’t easy. Wish every kid needing treatment got it here. And I wish every parent with a sick kid could put their kid in hands this capable. Nash, you’re the best. Love you, pal.”
According to the National Cancer Institute (NCI), rhabdomyosarcoma is the most common type of sarcoma in children. Sarcoma is a cancer that impacts soft tissue (including muscle), connective tissue or bone. There are multiple signs and symptoms of rhabdomyosarcoma, depending on where is begins developing in the body.
The most common sign is a lump or swelling that doesn’t go away or continues to grow. This lump or swelling can be painful. Crossed-eyes or bulging of the eye is also a common symptom. Surgery, radiation and chemotherapy are standard treatments for rhabdomyosarcoma. Immunotherapy and targeted therapy are new types of treatment for rhabdomyosarcoma are being tested in clinical trials.