Terminally-ill cancer sufferer, 8, completes bucket list wish to skydive from plane
An eight-year-old boy with terminal cancer has ticked his dream of skydiving off his bucket list.
Paxton Idell was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2021 at the age of 5 and after intensive treatment he was cancer-free for a year, but the disease returned and is now terminal.
His parents, Kristian and Amanda, have tried to help him gain every possible life experience in the short time he has left.
Kristian told WTSP: “Given his condition, it’s difficult for us to say no to anything.”
This weekend, Paxton traveled to Castroville, Texas, to fulfill his dream of skydiving.
Paxton Idell was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2021 at the age of 5, after intensive treatment he was cancer free for a year, but it returned and is now terminal
Paxton’s mother, Amanda, told WTSP, “After intensive chemotherapy, he ended up being cancer-free for about a year. And on April 5, 2023, he had a relapse.”
She said a relapse of his type of brain cancer is terminal.
But she added that his prognosis won’t stop her son from fulfilling everything on his bucket list.
When he asked to go skydiving, Amanda said, “The words he said to me were, ‘I’ve never done that in my life.’
“And my mother’s heart just dropped a little bit. And that kind of set the precedence for everything that’s happened since.”
It was a difficult bucket list item to put on because there are a lot of rules around children and safety.
Amanda said: ‘In the US they are very strict about skydiving by children under 18. So lawyers and equipment manufacturers are involved.’
The family traveled to Castroville to meet tandem skydiving instructor Noah Watts.
Paxton traveled to Castroville, Texas, to fulfill his dream of skydiving with his parents
In addition to skydiving, Paxton has also gone paragliding and been to the zoo, and the family is determined to check off even more boxes
Watts said: “I hope he gets everything he wants.
“This is definitely a leap of passion for him.”
Kristian decided to jump with his son and went with him on the plane, where his mother said he wasn’t even scared.
The family wrote on Facebook: ‘This boy has no fear whatsoever. Paxton, cool as a cucumber, even started falling asleep on the plane.”
Video of the amazing moment was caught on camera and showed Paxton grinning as he spun through the air.
In addition to skydiving, Paxton has also gone paragliding and been to the zoo, and the family is determined to check off even more boxes.
A GoFundMe to help the family with medical bills has raised $3,000.