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Steamboat Springs boy again battling cancer ‘alien’

Matt Stensland





Izaac Kinnison, 10, was diagnosed with a malignant tumor in his brain. On Wednesday, Izaac’s classmates will help more by having their heads shaved at the Boys & Girls Club of Steamboat Springs.


— The Steamboat Springs community is again rallying around Izaac Kinnison, an 11-year-old boy who found out last month the cancerous tumor in his head had returned.

It was surprising and devastating news for the family, according to family friend Chris Pohlman. Izaac, however, remains optimistic.

Izaac originally was diagnosed in May 2012 after having a CT scan at Yampa Valley Medical Center. After treatments, a scan in February showed the cancer was gone and Izaac had beaten what he referred to as an “alien.”



During the second weekend of May, Izaac and his brother Zeke destroyed the plywood alien built by Izaac’s Cub Scouts friends for last year’s July 4 parade.

“They both took after it with the hatchet,” Izaac’s mother, Lisa Kinnison, wrote. “We didn’t think it would start a war. Unfortunately, it has. Izaac has a malignant relapse.”



The news came May 14, exactly one year after Izaac’s original diagnosis.

“It was definitely a huge surprise when the scans came back and that darn alien was there again,” Izaac wrote on his Caring Bridge online journal. “It sucks and all, but I’m willing to take down the alien once again and have it never come back again.”

Izaac has undergone chemotherapy treatments and last week was having his stem cells harvested. Those will be transplanted once Izaac undergoes intensive chemotherapy in an effort to kill the cancer.

Pohlman said Izaac’s parents are unable to take another leave of absence from their jobs. They are staying at an apartment in Denver and the community is stepping up again to help with expenses related to Izaac’s treatment.

On Wednesday, a fundraiser is being held for Izaac in the form of a graduation party for Soda Creek Elementary School fifth-graders at the Ghost Ranch.

On Thursday, Pohlman is hosting a potluck fundraiser from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the United Methodist Church of Steamboat Springs.

“Bring an item to share and make a donation,” Pohlman said.

All proceeds from the potluck will go to a fund set up for Izaac at Wells Fargo.

To reach Matt Stensland, call 970-871-4247 or email mstensland@SteamboatToday.com


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