Trojan Wish: Malakai Carey
November 04, 2021 | Trojan Outreach
On Saturday, Oct. 30, Trojan Outreach gifted Malakai Carey and his family an exclusive experience for the Trojans' Homecoming football game against Arizona.
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Malakai is a strong and courageous 13-year-old boy diagnosed with hepatocellular neoplasm, a rare form of cancer. The tumor was on his liver. Malakai went through chemotherapy to shrink the size of the tumor before doing a transplant. Before the transplant — when Malakai was 12 years old — he weighed 50 pounds. He now weighs over 110 pounds, a testament to the success of the procedure.
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He has maintained a positive attitude through his treatment.
"I think about it like this," Malakai said. "Sure, I would have wanted to get cancer over with earlier. But if I had, I wouldn't have made all the new friends I have now. All the good things that have happened wouldn't have necessarily happened."
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The family received a pregame walkthrough of Heritage Hall and a bag of Trojan gear before heading to the game to watch the Trojans face off against Arizona. Prior to kickoff, Malakai got an on-field view of the football players running out of the tunnel.
"That was actually really cool." Malakai said.
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Saturday was a victory on the field and a win for the family.
"It's been a blast." Todd, Malakai's father, said. "It was wonderful."
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Malakai is a strong and courageous 13-year-old boy diagnosed with hepatocellular neoplasm, a rare form of cancer. The tumor was on his liver. Malakai went through chemotherapy to shrink the size of the tumor before doing a transplant. Before the transplant — when Malakai was 12 years old — he weighed 50 pounds. He now weighs over 110 pounds, a testament to the success of the procedure.
Â
He has maintained a positive attitude through his treatment.
"I think about it like this," Malakai said. "Sure, I would have wanted to get cancer over with earlier. But if I had, I wouldn't have made all the new friends I have now. All the good things that have happened wouldn't have necessarily happened."
Â
The family received a pregame walkthrough of Heritage Hall and a bag of Trojan gear before heading to the game to watch the Trojans face off against Arizona. Prior to kickoff, Malakai got an on-field view of the football players running out of the tunnel.
"That was actually really cool." Malakai said.
Â
Saturday was a victory on the field and a win for the family.
"It's been a blast." Todd, Malakai's father, said. "It was wonderful."
Â
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