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WHEN he spotted a red ball on his leg, Michael Croteau dismissed it as an ingrown hair.
The nursing student also noticed that her right knee was tense, as were her quadruple muscles.
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But it was only three months later, when the size seemed to get bigger and seemed infected, that the 21-year-old girl began to worry.
Michael, a native of Texas in the United States, went to see a dermatologist in April 2018 on the advice of his mother, Susan Williams, 52, who is also a nurse.
"I noticed a lump on the outside of my right thigh in September, I could feel it under the skin, had the impression that there was pressure." "said the 21-year-old.
"It started to change color and I started thinking that it was an ingrown hair.
"I never had one, but I did not really know what else it could be.
"I dug, but there did not seem to be any hair.
"He was raised and started to look infected, and my mother suggested that we go and have him examined."
The doctor suspected a more sinister growth and sent Michael to the UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.
There, the doctors delivered the devastating news.
The size was not an ingrown hair, but the sign of a rare cancer that affects the skin, muscles and bones.
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Michael has been diagnosed with a pseudomyogenic hemangioendothelioma (PHE), an extremely rare cancer that affects only one in a million people, in May of last year – eight months after the onset of his first symptoms.
Analyzes showed that Michael had a hundred tumors, attacking his right leg.
"It was a real shock, the cancer never touched me," Michael said.
He started to change color and started thinking that it was an ingrown hair. I never had one, but I did not really know what else.
Michael Croteau
"It was something that I would never have thought of happening, especially at this age. It has panicked me."
After ruling out the amputation, the doctors then prescribed Michael an experimental oral chemotherapy regimen and radiation therapy to try to manage his pain.
Her cancer is incurable, but doctors hope to stop the growth of Michael's tumors.
"Sarcoma usually has slow growth and there was a small risk of spreading like wildfire," said Michael.
"It's not very aggressive, and generally it does not respond as well to chemotherapy or radiation.
"But the options that have been presented to me were the amputation of the hip or simply to watch it and hope that it does not grow or spread. There is no remedy. "
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Mom said that watching her son cope with cancer and not knowing his prognosis had broken his heart.
"To hear that there is no cure for your son who has just finished high school is absolutely devastating," she said.
"We do not know how long he has.
"It could take a month or six years. He will always live with cancer, which is the hardest part.
"Because it's very rare, there's not a lot of research going on, so for us it's a game of waiting."
Doctors are currently monitoring the spots on Michael's lungs, but leg tumors have not developed.
Michael said, "The goal is to lead a normal life as long as I can.
"My tumors stayed the same, they did not get smaller, but they did not get bigger either.
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"It's so hard to tell what will happen because there is not much research on my type of cancer.
"They do not know how it will develop in the future.
"It's a scary thought because impossible to plan.
"I try not to think about it and live every day as best I can, but there is always that big" and so "over my head.
"Right now, we monitor my tumors every four months with the help of MRI, CT scans and blood tests."
Despite his illness, Michael continued his studies.
The future nurse warned other students to be proactive if they discovered an unusual change in their body.
Michael said, "If you notice something out of the ordinary with your body, have it checked.
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"Early diagnosis can be the key to treating so many cancers – if you notice something wrong, see your doctor.
"It could make the difference and save your life."
To donate to Michael's GoFundMe, visit here.
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