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KAYSVILLE -- The flu virus, possibly H1N1, may have triggered a rare disease in a 14-year-old Kaysville teenager. Davis Cox has what is called "severe aplastic anemia" -- a life-threatening condition that critically compromises the immune system.
Davis was healthy, playing football and baseball and hanging out with friends -- that is until his family had a bout with the flu.
-Mayo Clinic
"He was so healthy and strong five days before symptoms began appearing," says Davis' mother, Gayle Cox. "We had all been sick and had the same virus about five weeks before he got sick."
The young teen was diagnosed with aplastic anemia, a condition where cells in the bone marrow stop growing normally. White and red blood cell and platelet cell counts drop to critical levels.
Since Davis has no genetic backdrop for the disorder, nor has been exposed to hepatitis or benzene compounds, doctors suspect a random virus might be the villain.
"I think Davis had a bad flu, that was suspected to be H1N1, and probably after that he got this," says Dr. Hassan Yaish, physician at Primary Children's Medical Center.
A low white blood cell count means Davis is extremely vulnerable to infection. With platelet cell counts down, he also bleeds easily. The low red blood cell count makes him weak and short of breath most of the time.
Davis now remains isolated from friends, and family members have to take their clothes off in a laundry room and then shower each time they come inside.
When friends want to visit Davis, they have to do so at a distance -- either outside his house or, more often, via a webcam at a friend's house.
"It's hard. It's not that fun, you know, because you can hear all his jokes, but you can't punch each other," says Davis' friend Cody Argyle.
Despite the distance, the bond of friendship remains strong.
Davis has support from hundreds of friends. Even though he wasn't able to finish the eighth grade, he was still elected student body vice president for the following school year.
"Everybody wanted Davis to be it, so nobody ran against him. Everyone loves him. He's the main man," says student body president Warner Rigby.
"It was just awesome when I learned that I didn't have to forfeit because I wasn't able to be there," Davis says. "It's cool that my friends would do that for me."
If current immunosuppressant therapy doesn't kick start a recovery, Davis will need a bone marrow transplant.
For now, it's a wait-and-see game for this 14-year-old, who holds on to what his mother calls "a gentle strength" -- one that is very contagious.
The Kaysville community and fellow students at Kaysville Junior High are rallying around Davis and his family with a special two-day event planned this weekend. CLICK HERE for more information.
E-mail: eyeates@ksl.com
