Little cowboy putting up Godzilla-like fight

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There are two things people might learn about Hollister resident Hank Anthenien as they first see him: He is a cowboy through and through, and he loves Godzilla.

Though that’s an uncommon combination, the 6-year-old wears his straw cowboy hat with pride and carries his Godzilla plastic toys everywhere he goes. And for more than a year, Godzilla has accompanied Anthenien to the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford in Palo Alto for treatment. 

Following his stage 4 Neuroblastoma diagnosis on April 4, 2023, Anthenien has gone through many rounds of chemotherapy. Yet, he is in great spirits. 

According to the American Cancer Society, Neuroblastoma, which occurs most often in infants and young children, is a cancer that starts in certain very early forms of nerve cells, most often found in an embryo or fetus. Doctors found tumors in Hank’s brain and spinal cord.

Dianne Jacques, Anthenien’s aunt, said children who are diagnosed with stage 4 neuroblastoma have a 50/50 chance of survival. That number goes down to 5% if the patient relapses.  

A day after his sixth birthday, Anthenien and Godzilla made a trip to New York for surgery. It is one of many trips that are planned as part of getting the young man ready to partake in a neuroblastoma vaccine trial at Memorial Sloan Kettering. Before the trial begins, Anthenien needs several surgeries and he needs to be in full remission. The family is hopeful he can start the trial in early 2025.

Hank surrounded by all things related to Godzilla. Photo courtesy of Dianne Jacques.

“A long road but a more hopeful road than the trajectory we were on,” said Jacques, who grew up in Hollister but now lives in New York.

Hank Anthenien’s next trip to New York is scheduled for the end of November, when he will receive a treatment called Naxitamab, an induction chemotherapy for high-risk neuroblastoma. 

Anthenien and his family  are not alone in dealing with cancer in the community. According to the California Cancer Registry, in the latest data available between 2012 and 2021, San Benito County ranks 11th in the state in cancer rates per 100,000 residents for children under the age of 15. 

Since his diagnosis, Anthenien has taken extra precautions to avoid getting sick as his immune system is compromised. That includes minimizing contact with people outside of the household, and even eliminating contact with most of the family’s farm animals and pets, including a cat named Godzilla. 

“He will sit at the door with Godzilla in the glass door and sit there with the glass in between them or open a window and one of the rooms and talk to him through the screen,” Jacques said. 

He does, however, keep one hypoallergenic dog, Lulu, a beagle poodle mix, which the family is hoping will be approved as a social-emotional pet for Anthenien.

Hank Anthenien (right) spending time at the beach with his brother Cody and Lulu. Photo courtesy of Stephanie Barrientos.

For those in the household, they too have to take extra precautions—such as showering when they get home, constant hand washing and isolating at the first sign of sniffles. 

Despite his young age, Hank Anthenien understands that he needs to take extra precautions for his health. Even if he has to tell his aunt to not turn on the heater because it might give him a fever.

“He’s super mindful of his health and things he has to be aware of,” Jacques said. “I was just like, wow, this kid is really paying attention to what’s happening and trying to protect himself as well.”

Other challenges the family has faced are the constant road trips required to go to therapies and doctor appointments—as well as paying for the treatments. 

Jacques said their community has stepped up to help the family. Hollister’s chapter of Helping One Woman, a nonprofit that organizes monthly fundraising dinners for community members, honored Anthenien’s mom, Stephanie Barrientos in June 2023. The family also held a BBQ fundraiser event at San Juan Bautista’s Veterans of Foreign Wars in July 2024.

While having to go through these challenges, Barrientos remains focused on her son.

“I try to give him the most [normal life] we can,” Barrientos said. “We take him to the beach. When I take him to the beach he is a normal kid.”

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