In the fall of 2022, Milan was sick with what we thought was the flu or Covid. We tried to wait it out but he didn’t get better. He would come home from school exhausted. After 2 weeks of this he got a nosebleed that did not stop. His liver and spleen were enlarged, lymph nodes were swollen, and he was turning yellow by the time we got to hospital. Within 20 mins of taking blood they knew he had cancer.
He spent 3 months in the hospital since November. He’s had over 80 doses of chemo and so many side effects. He turned 16 while in the hospital feeling horrible. He still has 2 more years of treatment. He is going to hopefully return to school soon.
We have two other kids so it’s a big life change for all of us. We are at the hospital so much it’s like our second home now.. We are getting thru it though.
Juliana was diagnosed wil ALL on Dec 30th, 2021. She had 2 random fevers between Nov – Dec. unknown causes, was tested for everything. It was just “viral” and needed to run its course. The second fever she had was extremely high fever. After that, we noticed she didn’t want to walk. She had leg pains (which we assumed was growing pains). Then she wasn’t eating much, she was very pale, low energy, and sleeping a lot. I felt like something was way off. I talked to our pediatrician and asked for blood work. We had an appointment for the following week. I couldn’t wait. I was able to get her in the next day. I finally got her results through mychart and knew it was cancer by just looking at her bloodwork.
At the beginning she didn’t want to walk. She hated the IVs and would refuse to move her arms. During treatment she lost a lot of her balancing skills and strength and was very shaky. Certain chemos caused that. She was on a clinical trial for 2 -1 month infusions. She was connected to a bag for 28 days each time. That infusion would make her arms and hands very unstable. She’s currently in jazz and able to keep up. Last year when she joined, it was a struggle.
Her treatment plan is about 2.5 yrs long. She’s had 17 procedures so far. She has one more left in late December to remove her port. About half have been through anesthesia, 3 have been half awake with meds, and the rest were with laughing gas. I’ve lost track of how much chemo she’s gotten. It’s been so much, and she also takes a night chemo pill.
Juliana was diagnosed right in the middle of covid. We were very much isolated. No visitors allowed in the hospital. At home we only did long distance visits. There were a couple of gatherings where everyone was masked and took covid tests.
Our struggles have been mostly mental health related. It’s hard, mentally. Lots of stress. Lots of ER trips and unexpected hospital stays.
Cancer changes everything. My husband has luckily been able to work from home the whole time. Juliana lost most of her childhood due to cancer. She’s missed out on a lot. We all have a family. We were in survival mode and still are. Juliana is the strongest kid I know!
Priscilla was diagnosed with Leukemia on April 15, 2023. Before her diagnosis, she experienced nose bleeds and was always sick. We can not go to crowded places due to her low immune system.
This has changed a lot! My daughter needs to stay at home if she doesn’t have treatment and we can’t go anywhere now! And the whole family needs to be conscious and more extra care.
Cancer is a scary word! And it turned our world upside down but I learned to look at the positive side of everything and live day by day. As I look back I can still feel how blessed we are and God always sending us an angel in disguise who is always willing to help! Right now our hope is to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Kinley is a sweetheart. Her dad makes her laugh the most with all of the funny faces and noises he makes. She loves all animals so much that her second birthday was party animal-themed. During her treatments, she found her love for Disney movies and we are hoping to take a trip once she is officially done with all of her treatments.
She was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma in April 2023. Before her diagnosis, after she turned one, she had a black eye that popped up randomly. Two weeks later, it was still there. It would fade slightly and come back worse.
She has had a biopsy, two port placements, removal of one ovary, removal of one adrenal gland, apheresis catheter placement, and removal.
This has been the hardest thing that we have been through. It has made us stronger as a family and stronger in our faith. It has been so hard seeing our daughter go through the pain and suffering that she has been through in the past year. It has also been hard to see all of the other kids and families that are going through childhood cancer as well. We are so thankful for all of the help from friends and family that we have received. I want to pay it forward and return their kindness in any way that I can.
Mason is such a funny, goofy, happy kid. He’s such a strong, determined little boy. He is kind and he is so smart he knows what he wants and he’s not afraid to say it. He has such a strong love for learning and loves going to school. He loves reading and puzzles and games. He loves playing baseball and soccer with his friends. His special interests are numbers, letters, spelling, and building things. He loves his chickens and being with his little brother.
He was battling Covid and at the same time, he was having joint pains and on-and-off fevers weeks after he got over Covid. Then he became extremely lethargic, pale, and high heart rate. He was diagnosed with ALL on February 2nd, 2023.
He is currently being treated with chemotherapy and his entire treatment will last until April 2024. He was on high doses of vincristine, and methotrexate. He currently takes daily chemo and weekly methotrexate as well as monthly spinal taps with spinal chemotherapy. We struggle currently just with managing daily life due to side effects such as nausea vomiting lack of sleep mood swings.
Mason’s diagnosis has changed our family dynamic. I had to quit my job to become his caretaker full time because he could not be in the general public and now I only work part-time so that I can be available for him at any point of the day in case he gets sick at school or has an appointment or any other unexpected thing. We have to pick and choose things that we can and can’t do with our kids due to finances.
Ava was diagnosed with ALL on 8/9/23 after having bruising and fatigue. She is receiving chemotherapy and treatment for infection due to immunosuppression.
