{"id":182156,"date":"2018-05-05T10:51:01","date_gmt":"2018-05-05T14:51:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=182156"},"modified":"2018-05-03T16:45:17","modified_gmt":"2018-05-03T20:45:17","slug":"brothers-15th-triathlon-doctors-survive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/brothers-15th-triathlon-doctors-survive\/","title":{"rendered":"Brothers complete 15th triathlon together after doctors said one wouldn’t survive"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Noah Aldrich is a typical 11-year-old boy, but four years ago he began doing something quite remarkable and atypical with his younger brother Lucas, age nine. Lucas has lissencephaly\u00a0and is unable to walk, but thanks to Noah, Lucas is a triathlete and has participated in 15 triathlons.<\/p>\n

“When my little brother Lucas was born, my parents were told that he wouldn’t walk or talk and the doctors even said he might not make it to his tenth birthday,” said Noah in a video for Great Big Story<\/a>. “But today, a few months away from his tenth birthday, we’re doing our 15th triathlon together.”<\/p>\n

\"Triathlon

Triathlon brothers Noah and Lucas Aldrich in the pool.<\/p><\/div>\n

Lissencephaly is a rare, genetic, neurological condition in which the normal folds and wrinkles of the brain are missing. As the brain develops in the fetus at around 12-14 weeks gestation, the nerve cells begin to move, but in children with lissencephaly, they don’t. This can cause failure to thrive, intellectual impairment, psychomotor impairment, seizures, and difficulty swallowing, among other issues. For children with severe lissencephaly, there is a life expectancy of 10 years with common causes of death including choking, respiratory disease, and seizures. Children with mild lissencephaly can have near-normal development and brain function.<\/p>\n

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