Courageous Enfield Teen Succumbs to Cancer

A 17-year-old Enfield boy who symbolized courage by excelling in sports despite battling cancer and enduring a liver transplant has passed away.

Jacob Carlander, a Fermi High School student, died Friday, surrounded by his family, at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center.

A standout baseball and basketball player as a youth, Jacob began feeling ill in late May of 2010. After a series of tests, he was diagnosed with hepatoblastoma, a rare form of cancer that usually occurs in infants and children less than four years old.

Jacob began chemotherapy treatments in June 2010, and on Sept. 16 of that year, he traveled to Boston to have a liver transplant.

Following the 14-hour procedure, Jacob recovered remarkably well. He began playing basketball for St. Martha School that winter, and Thompsonville Little League baseball in the spring.

“The first year was just routine checkups, scanning and testing,” his mother, AnnKera Carlander, said in a 2012 interview with Enfield Patch.

He played baseball at various levels for Tom Owens, who originally drafted him for his Little League team as a 10-year-old.

“He was strong as an ox, but he didn’t care where he played or how much he played,” Owens said. “More than that, though, he was an unbelievable kid. The bravest and strongest-willed, yet one of the nicest kids ever. Once our lawnmower broke down, and without giving it any thought, he just came over and took care of it.”

In April 2012, a scan revealed lesions on Jacob’s liver; a biopsy showed them to be cancerous.

He began more grueling treatments again that month, and fought valiantly until the very end.

Despite his incredible ordeal, “Jacob maintained his sense of humor, playing jokes on everyone quietly as he never wanted to be the center of attention,” his obituary reads.

His dad, Andrew, said his son was an organ donor, and that his eyes will be given to someone in need.

“Some time ago, Jacob was given a gift of life with a new liver,” Andrew Carlander wrote on Facebook. “We were all blessed with the five years that he shared with us. Special memories that all of us will carry in our hearts forever. We had that special time with him because someone decided to become a donor. We all should be proud of Jacob. He returned the favor today. Soon, someone will have a special gift that Jacob has given. His eyes will be a special gift of life that someone will get in a time of need and will change a life. It all comes full circle eventually.”

Calling hours will be Wednesday, Aug. 19 from 4-8 p.m. at Browne Memorial Funeral Chapels, 43 Shaker Rd., Enfield. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Thursday, Aug. 20 at 10 a.m. in St. Martha Church, 214 Brainard Rd., Enfield.

Read the complete obituary at www.brownefuneralchapel.com.

Photo: Jacob Carlander and his mom, AnnKera, in 2012. Patch file photo.