Joy is a silly, sweet, and smart little girl. She loves to dance and listen to music. She can be shy at first in new social situations but will warm up and become your best friend. She loves other kids, especially her age. Her favorite things are princesses, SpongeBob, tea parties, and playing outside.
Shortly after her third birthday, Joy was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in November of 2020. She had developed a fever near Halloween. I remember skipping trick-or-treating that year. She visited the pediatrician about five days into the fever and her doctor just thought it was a virus. After 10 days of fighting a fever, we returned to the pediatrician, who ordered blood work. Joy was pale and fatigued. Later that day, results showed that Joy was severely anemic, We were immediately sent to the ER where we were given her official diagnosis of leukemia.
Joy started receiving chemotherapy the day after she was diagnosed. Her treatment will last about 2.5 years. She is currently in maintenance and takes daily oral chemo pills. She visits the hospital every month for labs. Every three months when she has her lumbar puncture, she receives chemo in her spine and port and receives steroids as well. Her treatment will continue until February of 2023.
We face similar struggles as other cancer families: anxiety, the weariness of all of the medication, and watching how cancer treatment has affected Joy’s behavior. All of this has made us stronger in some ways because we didn’t have a choice other than to face this head-on. My sons have raised money for cancer support organizations and are big cheerleaders for their little sister.
We are just so proud of our warrior girl!
Hope Session by Bubble + Spark Chicago Family Photographers | Instagram