Raygan is an amazing, God loving, carefree soul. She has never met a stranger and greets everyone with a smile. She enjoys dancing, ballet and tumbling. She has a glow that radiates SUNSHINE.
In May of 2013, we noticed a lump in stomach under her rib cage. She was diagnosed with high risk Neuroblastoma Stage IV. After numerous rounds of chemotherapy, immunotherapy, radiation, a stem cell transplant and surgery; she is now a survivor!
We live everyday like its our last. We try to let her experience as many things in life as we can.She has a unique outlook on her life as a survivor and know she was put on this earth to do great things in her life.
Dominic is a very loving, sweet, sensitive, gentle and kind boy. Being goofy makes him laugh! He loves anything about helicopters, fighter jets, lego, military, aircraft carriers, building, playing outside, flying kites, fishing, camping, boating, video games, arcades, playing with his younger brother and being a pilot!
When he was 5 months old he was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma. His symptoms included purple lesions on skin, distended abdomen, and loose, green frequent stools. His treatment plan consisted of two rounds of chemotherapy with four different drugs. He has also had many other procedures and surgeries with numerous finger pokes. We do need to follow his heart function closely with echograms. There might be some physical activity if his heart function declines again. However, at the moment there is none, thank goodness. Dominic is so strong and only now understands his fight. We are very proud of him! As parents, we do worry about him and the long term effects of chemotherapy and secondary cancers, etc.
We try not to take life for granted. Children are such a blessing. Cancer really put our true priorities into perspective. We learned a lot about the realities of pediatric cancer and found strength in ourselves we didn’t know we had. We are in constant awe of the strength shown by our fighter!He inspires us every day!
Terje is the strongest person I know! She is always going into the doctors with a smile on her face, even though what she goes in for isn’t always easy or pain free. She loves music and has played piano for several years and recently started the flute. She also loves reading and is engaged in the Harry Potter series right now. She likes to play outside with her brother and sisters, ride her bike, swim (even though she’s deaf when she does), camp, play sports, and has a great passion for drawing/art.
In 2006, she was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma. Neuroblastoma is a cancer that is usually found in the kidneys. Her only symptoms were an ongoing stomach flu and listlessness. She had a 30% prognosis and beat the odds!
In 2016, she developed a secondary cancer, thyroid cancer. She had no symptoms and we are so thankful she has a great doctor that caught it! Only 5% of thyroid cancer develops in children.
Terje has had chemo, radiation, autologous bone marrow transplants, multiple surgeries, and goes in for evaluation for the need of more chemo at the end of the month. Her cancer treatments have left her deaf with bilateral cochlear implants, her teeth have no root system and will eventually all fall out, medically induced cataracts in both eyes, and extremely small for her age. With her limitations we have had to make changes to our everyday life, eating habits, etc to support her. We have also had to make many sacrifices over the years to adjust for health costs that come with having a child with cancer.
Terje, against all odds, has pulled through with style! She is an amazing example of strength, faith, hope, and happiness and touches anyone she comes in contact with! She is such a special young lady, and daily continues to fight her trials and face them head on! This experience has given us an appreciation for life and living every day to your fullest!
Isaiah loves his big brother. He lights up the second he sees him. He’s crawling but not walking yet. He loves music, bubbles and balls.
In the fall of last year, Isaiah woke up one morning with a droopy eye which eventually (a month later) led to his diagnosis of stage 2 neuroblastoma. Changes in the eyes is a common symptom of neuroblastoma but children can also exhibit pain in the legs or arms or a lump or mass that the parent can feel. Surgery and chemotherapy are standard treatments for neuroblastoma. Isaiah has had two surgeries along with chemotherapy treatment.
This cancer diagnosis has been extremely trying. I had to quit my job to take care of Isaiah and financially we just aren’t surviving. It is very hard with two other children.
Landon is a happy loving kid. He loves being outside and his second favorite thing is playing on his Ipad.
When Landon was just seven months old, we noticed he had shortness of breath. We thought that was odd. The doctors
took a chest x-ray and noticed that his heart looked enlarged. They decided to transfer him to Children’s Memorial Herman in Houston. When the doctors at CMH took another chest x-ray, they found a large tumor that was putting pressure on his lungs and heart. So that is how this difficult journey of Neuroblastoma cancer began. Neuroblastoma often occurs in children under 5 and is the most common type of cancer that affects babies under 1.
Landon has had 3 years worth of chemotherapy, 12 rounds of immunotherapy, 4 surgeries, and 20 rounds of proton therapy. Landon’s treating hospital is 3 1/2 hours away from our home. Landon and I stay in Fort Worth, Texas to be close to the hospital. His dad and grandfather visit every weekend. It is a struggle not being able to be home and have a “normal” life.
Landon is nervous around strangers and is socially delayed. He has never been able to go to daycare or Mother’s Day out due to treatment or his counts being low. He is still fighting and has a good prognosis.
When I was asked what kind of pictures I wanted of Landon, my reply was him just getting to be a little boy. After many long hospital stays, living out of town, and shots and pokes, I look at these pictures and my heart fills with love and my eyes fill with tears. They are just so precious.
Harper is a silly, happy and very smart little girl. She loves to laugh but she also has a pretty fiery temper. She loves Minnie Mouse and the whole Clubhouse gang and Thomas the tank engine. She loves to go swimming, play with cars, color and to go to the park.
When Harper was six months old, she suddenly lost the movement of her legs. She underwent testing followed by emergency surgery and we discovered she had neuroblastoma. Some other common symptoms of Neuroblastoma can be fever, loss of appetite and fatigue. Neuroblastoma often occurs in the kidney but can also develop in the neck, chest, abdomen, spine or bones. Neuroblastoma often occurs in children under 5 and is the most common type of cancer that affects babies under 1.
Harper has been through a lot at such a young age. Her treatment plan consisted of four rounds of chemotherapy, four different surgeries and two stays in the pediatric intensive care unit. She continues to have sedated MRIs and urine tests.
Having a young child with cancer can be stressful because she is unable to tell us what’s wrong. It’s also made us appreciate all the little things more.
