‘Let’s fight through this’
Hunter Pietrowski’s eyes lit up as he watched a personal video sent to him from flexing Patriots star Rob Gronkowski, who pumped up the 13-year-old as he battles brain cancer and prepares for his final round of chemotherapy tomorrow.
“It was exciting. I was speechless to see my favorite player send me something,” Hunter told me last night from his North Carolina home.
What would he like to say to Gronk? “I love you,” he said. Hunter’s mom, Tiffany Pietrowski, said she received Gronk’s video by email Monday night, less than 24 hours after a friend launched a social media campaign urging the hobbled tight end to meet with Hunter.
The friend tweeted a photo of the young “cancer warrior” in his Patriots attire. Gronkowski — now rehabbing from back surgery — didn’t hesitate to respond.
“What’s up, Hunter? It’s your buddy Rob Gronkowski here. I’ve been hearing about you lately today, all over the internet, a couple friends hitting me up, just hearing about your story, Hunter. I just want to say congratulations on your last chemo session coming up on Thursday and we’re both going through a little setback right now but we’re both going to come back with major comebacks, Hunter. So let’s do it. Stay strong and let’s fight through this. Let’s go.”
On Monday night, Gronk tweeted there was a “surprise on way.” When Tiffany opened up her email, she saw Gronk’s face and was awestruck. The family has watched the video about 50 times.
“It just melts my heart to see him be a kid and get excited over things like that and realize that even though he’s got this horrible disease … he has this incredible moment,” Tiffany told me. “This is an excellent moment that he will always remember. We’re hoping that these good moments will eventually outweigh any of the bad memories he’s got from this cancer.”
Tiffany and her husband, Adam, are from Lawrence and moved to North Carolina a few years ago. She said their hearts, and all their family, are still in Massachusetts. They remain huge Patriots fans.
Hunter is a fighter. He’s a triplet who suffered a stroke the day after he was born at Massachusetts General Hospital. Last June, Hunter had some headaches and was vomiting so Tiffany and Adam brought their son to the emergency room.
A CT scan found a golf-ball sized tumor on his brain. He was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer that spread to his spine. He underwent surgery to remove the tumor followed by six weeks of radiation. He started chemo in October.
Tomorrow, Hunter will be admitted to Duke’s Children’s Hospital for a week, where he has been getting his treatment, for his fourth — and final — round of adult-dose chemotherapy.
“We are fingers-crossed that this is going to be the finish line for him,” Tiffany said.
“He’s just been a trouper and he’s made it through with a smile the entire way,” Tiffany said. “He’s incredibly brave.”
Hunter will cheer the Patriots on Saturday from his hospital bed. He was able to make a trip to Gillette Stadium to watch the Pats play Buffalo this season and met Tom Brady during a game against the Carolina Panthers. He hopes to meet Gronk one day, and should the Pats win the Super Bowl, the family hopes to travel to Boston to cheer them on during the parade.
“Gronk is an inspiration to Hunter and it just means the world to me,” Tiffany said. “I am forever grateful to Gronkowski. We are just so grateful to everyone.”