COLERAIN TOWNSHIP, Ohio -- "Tonight, it feels like our tears will never stop and the lump in our throats is (too) big to breathe through," Todd Allen wrote Thursday evening.
His son, 2-year-old Brody, became the center of a community-wide September Christmas celebration in their small community just outside of Cincinnati after the Allen family revealed the toddler likely would not survive until Dec. 25.
According to Allen, doctors now predict he may not survive until Halloween.
"There is no easy way to say this but Brody's body is failing him," Allen wrote in the Team Brody Facebook group. "We have been told that Brody may have only days left with us. Our hearts are absolutely broken."
Brody was born with a rare brain cancer, the symptoms of which did not emerge until he had developed four serious tumors. After 98 days of treatment, there were five, and doctors at Cincinnati Children's Hospital said they could no longer help. At that time, they predicted he would live no longer than Oct. 5.
The family took Brody home and redecorated their house for Christmas, hoping to at least make his last months happy and comfortable. Todd Allen took time off from his job as an over-the-road trucker. When neighbors learned about the out-of-season celebration, they decorated their own homes, sent cards to the family and even held a Christmas parade Sept. 23.
Memories of that kindness have helped the family cope with Thursday's news, Allen wrote. As they have in the past, they plan to "trust that God has a plan," keep Brody comfortable and remain grateful for the support of everyone who joins them on their journey.
"Brody is here," Allen wrote. "He's resting comfortably with Lucy his puppy sleeping on his lap. He is still here and with your help we can live in this moment."
