The story of Nelson and CAMTA

Nelsons's Story: "CAMTA changed my life"

Dr. Tim Kostamo, Nelson Pauker, and Dr. Ryan Wright in February 2025

From healthy to not able to walk

Nelson Pauker was a healthy 13-year old boy who loved to play basketball. One morning he woke up in pain and could hardly breath. His mother took him to the hospital where they were told Nelson had a bad cold or flu. He was sent home.

A week later, Nelson was back at the hospital. He went into septic shock. Doctors put him in an induced coma. They operated on him eight times, to scrape out an infection in his hip. He was discharged three months later.

"When they discharged me they left me with nothing in the hip, just bone on bone," Nelson said. "I was in pain for two years after that and could not walk."

CAMTA is their last resort

During those two years, Nelson's mother Nidia went to doctors to try to get help for her son, but was told he was too young or the surgery too expensive.

Nelson said he became depressed and had thoughts of ending his life.

His mother heard about CAMTA and in 2017, she and Nelson made the three hour trip from the Amazon to the city of Quito and the CAMTA clinic.

Nelson was not on the list of potential patients to be assessed by CAMTA doctors. However, family physician Dr. Ryan Wright spoke with Nelson and his mother, and then talked with the medical team about his case.

Dr. Tim Kostamo with Nelson, his mother Nidia and baby brother Milán in 2018

Doctors evaluate case

The CAMTA doctors who evaluated Nelson's situation were concerned the infection that did so much damage originally, might still exist in his hip.

Their plan was to get blood work and cultures to rule out an infection before proceeding with a definitive treatment plan.

Once the test results were reviewed, the team agreed to do the surgery.

16-year old Nelson in 2017

"Some kind of miracle"

The case weighed on the heart and mind of orthopedic surgeon Dr.Tim Kostamo.

"I woke up at 4 a.m. that morning terrified. Nelson was my youngest patient by a long shot. I was sweating and I was praying," Kostamo said. "I went to the gym to run off my stress."

"The crazy thing is we brought only two different size ceramic heads that year. One fit another patient and one fit Nelson exactly," he said. "It's some kind of miracle."

Tim and Nelson in 2018 for Nelson's follow-up with CAMTA

"I'm very lucky"

Nelson said he got his life back because of CAMTA.

"I'm very lucky," he said. "CAMTA changed my life."

Once he had fully recovered from his surgery, Nelson began to work hard to learn English.

In February 2023, and again in February 2025, he joined the CAMTA Team as a translator.

The 24-year old is now a third year medical student.

Nelson in 2017, up and walking following his surgery

"The coolest ever circle of life moment"

On Friday February 28th, 2025 Nelson scrubbed in and assisted Dr. Kostamo in performing a hip replacement surgery.

"It was exciting, scary, emotional, "Nelson said. "Tim is important to me, he changed my life .. he's giving me an opportunity and I wanna do it right."

"This is like the coolest ever circle of life moment," Kostamo said. "What are the odds that your patient now is becoming a doctor. He's a medical student, he's scrubbed in, this is his first scrub. This is unbelievable."

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