The Cheyenne East senior looked forward to his first year in a Thunderbirds singlet after deciding to give grappling a try for the first time. He posted four wins, including three decisions while competing at 152 and 160 pounds for the T-Birds this past winter.
Wrestling in college wasn’t in Ramsey’s plans. He didn’t want to. He wanted to serve his country and envisioned joining the U.S. Air Force to become an aircraft mechanic, and after working toward a degree, a pilot.
His future was set, much like that of his buddies and most 18-year-olds.
Never did Ramsey fathom the nightmarish path the past few months would force him down.
In December, Ramsey felt a “knot” in his left leg, near his thigh. He didn’t think anything of it at the time, other than the normal muscle soreness, aches and pains that accompany everyday practice and competition.
“I just thought of that it would come out eventually and I’ll just keep wrestling through,” he said.
Ramsey toughed it out, but the knot didn’t go away.
In January, he made an appointment with Dr. Vincent “Skip” Ross of Smart Sports Medicine and also did some physical therapy, hoping that would put an end to the problem.
“They thought maybe he had a ruptured quad,” Ramsey’s mom, Meri Geringer, said.
The news was comforting, Ramsey thought. He remained confident his leg would eventually heal, and he’d be 100% by the time the Class 4A state wrestling tournament came around. He continued going to physical therapy.
But his condition hadn’t gotten any better following state. His leg grew weak, and he lost about 15-20 pounds.
“It actually had deteriorated,” he added.
Ramsey went back to Ross, who advised him to get an X-ray and MRI, which were done March 25 at Cheyenne Radiology Group. The results were heartbreaking: Ramsey had a tumor on his femur that was “growing out of control.”
Ramsey was then referred to Children’s Hospital at Anschutz in Aurora, Colorado, where, after additional testing, including a biopsy April 2, he learned he had metastatic osteosarcoma – a type of cancer that spread from his femur to his lungs.
“My first reaction was … scared but confused,” Ramsey said. “… like what can I do to fix this type of reaction? … Didn’t know what this meant for my life, because I had plans, I had aspirations. I didn’t know how that was going to affect it. … I didn’t know what my future was going to be. I didn’t know if I was going to have a future. I didn’t know how threatening it was.”
Ramsey’s life – one he has yet to fully start, and one with so many dreams and aspirations – came to a complete stop. Having turned 18 in February, he was crushed.
He shouldn’t have to deal with cancer. Not at his age.
Doctors are confident they can “tackle” the cancer, Ramsey said, saying he was told his case is both curable and fightable.
The road to recovery is daunting.
He started chemotherapy April 7 – the first of six cycles of treatment, with each one hospitalizing him anywhere between two and four days. After two cycles of chemo, Ramsey will have surgeries – one to reconstruct a portion of his femur with cadaver bone, and another to remove the metastases in his lungs. More rounds of chemo will follow the surgeries. All of which will take nine to 10 months to complete.
“It’s been a roller coaster ride,” Geringer said. “Of course, as a mom, you never expect this to happen to your kid. There’s been some anger. There’s been some frustration.
“But Jaden really has been so good at being so positive that it’s contagious. And if he’s not going to let it get him down, I’m certainly not going to let it get me down.”
The emotional toll Ramsey’s cancer has brought has been exhausting. His mom not only helps take care of him, but also raises his 6-year-old sister, Malin, along with teaching her and working from home with Laramie-based Corthell and King Law Firm. Under normal circumstances, Geringer commutes to work. The COVID-19 pandemic has further complicated matters, on top of Ramsey’s cancer.
“Dealing with that has, I think, made the emotional roller coaster a little bit more intense,” Geringer said. “But we’ve got good support who are helping from afar, from a distance, the best that they can. There’s been a lot of people reaching out and just giving Jaden a lot of support, giving our family a lot of support.
“His dad and stepmom are receiving a lot of support. Even though people can’t physically be there, there’s a lot that they are offering to do to help us through it.”
Ramsey’s dreams of joining the military and one day becoming a pilot? Gone. His cancer, particularly having the cadaver bone reconstruction, disqualified him from service.
“If it breaks, it will not heal,” Ramsey said. “So, if I were to snap my femur, I would have to come in and get it reconstructed with another bone, and the doctor doesn’t want that to happen.”
Right now, Ramsey is keeping his future options open. He remains steadfast in his belief he still can achieve his dreams, even though they have altered course. Becoming a mechanic and attending trade school and college are things he’s considering.
As he gears up for the fight of his life, Ramsey is taking it one minute and one day at a time. He’s approaching it just like he would if he were on the wrestling mat. He knows the path forward will be difficult, and both emotionally and physically taxing. His body will be worn out.
Scars from surgical incisions will serve as reminders of the fight he knows he will win.
“It’s something I gotta deal with. It’s something I gotta fight and get over,” he said. “It’s like wrestling. You’ve got to put your best in the match, no matter what. You wrestle your hardest, you give 100%.”
Tyler Poslosky is a writer for WyoSports. He can be reached at 307-633-3123 or by email at tposlosky@wyosports.net. Follow him on Twitter at @TylerPoslosky.
