( CNN ) -- Most artists have to wait years -- or perhaps an eternity -- to earn serious money from their work . Aidan Reed , on the other hand , earned more than $ 83,000 in a few weeks , and he 's only 5 . Aidan 's art is of monsters -- green ones , black ones , scary ones , silly ones . The people who buy his drawings are n't necessarily art lovers or monster lovers . They just want to help Aidan , whose leukemia was diagnosed three months ago , and whose parents nearly had to sell their house because of the financial difficulties of dealing with cancer . When Aidan 's family started selling his drawings online in early October , his parents thought they 'd sell a few each week . They never imagined it could more than make up for the income they were losing because Aidan 's father , Wiley Reed , had to take unpaid time off to be with Aidan during treatments . `` We were in the hospital with Aidan , and my husband and I were talking about selling the house , which I did n't want to do . I was really upset , '' said his mother , Katie Reed . `` While we were there , we found out we 'd sold over 2,000 drawings . I just fell down crying . It was so awesome . I knew we 'd finally be OK. '' `` He 's a great artist , but I never thought he 'd be famous at 5 , '' adds Reed , who lives in Clearwater , Kansas , and gave birth to Aidan 's little brother , Amry , just 12 days after Aidan 's cancer diagnosis . An aunt 's love . The idea for selling Aidan 's artwork came from his father 's sister , Mandi Ostein , who lives in Peoria , Illinois , and was trying to think of a way to help from afar . She had to look no further than her newborn son 's nursery for answers . A few months before he got sick , Aidan had sent her some of his drawings to decorate his cousin 's room . `` I 'd sold items I 've made on etsy.com -- purses , bags , clothes -- and I thought we could sell Aidan 's drawings there , too , '' she says . Ostein opened up a shop , Aidan 's Monsters , on the popular website . `` When I first mentioned it to my brother , he thought it was crazy , '' she adds . `` But I thought we could sell 60 by Thanksgiving . '' Instead , she sold nearly 7,000 by Thanksgiving for $ 12 a piece . She says sales really took off when a friend of hers convinced a website called regretsy.com , which usually pokes fun of the products on etsy.com , to promote sales of Aidan 's drawings . Now selling Aidan 's art has become a full-time job , in addition to taking care of her baby . `` I print , package , ship and answer e-mails from home , '' she says . `` Upstairs is the printing department , downstairs is the shipping department , and wherever I am is the PR department . '' Ostein says she knows why Aidan 's drawings are selling so phenomenally well . `` People really want to help , '' Ostein says . `` They say Aidan 's story really touches them . '' Aidan 's story . Aidan was a healthy 5-year-old until late this past summer when he started having fevers that would n't go away , no matter how many medicines his pediatrician prescribed . Then on the weekend of September 10 , he developed a terrible cough , and his parents noticed bruises on his body . `` Usually Aidan tells us if he 's hurt himself or run into something , but he could n't explain these bruises at all , '' Reed says . The Reeds took Aidan to the pediatrician 's office that Monday , and blood tests confirmed the worst : Aidan had leukemia . He started treatment the next day at Wesley Medical Center in Wichita , Kansas , receiving several rounds of chemotherapy . Wiley Reed works for Cessna training factory workers , and his insurance is good . While the family is responsible for a $ 250 co-payment when Aidan goes to the hospital , most of the rest of his care is covered . What set them back financially is that Wiley has had to take unpaid time off work . His wife stays at home with Aidan and his baby brother , so the family had to go without any income . `` We were buying cheaper groceries and cutting way back on clothes , and we 're not big shoppers to begin with , '' Katie Reed says . `` The money from the drawings really relieved us . When insurance is n't enough . Reed says she never imagined how expensive an illness could be even when you do have good insurance . `` If I were to see this story , I would think to myself , 'These people have insurance . What are they talking about ? ' `` Reed says . In addition to her husband 's lost wages , the family has had other expenses , such as buying food at the hospital instead of cooking at home . The Reeds ' situation is n't unusual , says Jeanie Barnett , director of communications for CancerCare , an organization that helps people affected by cancer . `` Cancer is an incredibly expensive disease , '' Barnett says . `` And no one budgets to have cancer . '' There are lost wages , which the Reeds faced , as well as transportation costs to and from the hospital . Plus , even good insurance does n't cover all the costs . `` You can get socked at the pharmacy for $ 900 a month , or even $ 3,000 a month , and that 's with insurance , '' Barnett says . Families have become clever about how to raise money , she adds . For example , parents of one child with cancer held a `` pie-a-thon , '' cooking pies for 48 hours straight and selling them . For help facing the financial burdens of cancer , contact CancerCare or the Cancer Financial Assistance Coalition . And a previous Empowered Patient column also offered advice : After cancer diagnosis , what comes next ? Barnett urges patients and their families who are having fundraisers to beware of the taxman : If you raise a lot of money , you could get pushed into a higher income bracket and face higher taxes . To learn more about smart fundraising , see page 3 of this guide from the National Marrow Donor Program . Aidan 's future . The Reeds are right now trying to figure out now how much of their income from the drawings is taxable . Some of it they 've used to pay their mortgage and other expenses , but some has also been used for art supplies for Aidan . Ostein says sales are still going strong even though she 's told customers that for the time being the family is fine . Money from future sales will be put away for later . Wiley Reed is back at work but takes unpaid time off when Aidan has a doctor 's appointment . `` He gets a spinal tap every three weeks , and those are not good to go through , '' Katie Reed says . `` I ca n't emotionally handle it . I always have to leave the room , so Wiley 's the one who stays strong for him and holds his hand . '' She says the response to Aidan 's drawings has helped her emotionally , not just financially . `` I love reading the happy stories people leave on Aidan 's blog about how they 've been through this , and it does get better , '' she says . `` It 's really helped me stay positive through all this because I was really depressed seeing my child have to go through all this not knowing whether he 'd make it or not . '' As for Aidan , he keeps drawing , sometimes for hours a day , even when he 's in the hospital . He recently started to draw jesters ( `` he loves the hats and the bells , '' his mother says ) , and he 's asked Santa for a four-faced clown mask he saw online for Christmas . Still , monsters are his main theme . `` I do n't think he realizes it , but monsters have become iconic for him , '' she says . `` I think he likes them because he 's fighting a monster inside himself . ''
Aidan , 5 , who draws monsters , received a leukemia diagnosis Thanksgiving . Aidan 's aunt , Mandi Osteinsold , sold one drawings by 5 for $ more than $ 83,000 apiece . In addition to lost wages , the family has had other unexpected expenses .