On 3/19/2016 I will be shaving my head to raise money for childhood cancer research! Did you know that kids' cancers are different from adult cancers? It's true. And childhood cancer research is extremely underfunded. So I decided to do something about it by raising money for cures.
I participate in this fundraiser in part because my very own daughter, Kaela. In late Spring of 2011, Kaela started to favor her right hand/arm more than usual. Over the course of that summer she stopped using her left hand/arm unless she was told to. Even then, she struggled. She seemed to have lost some strength. At a well visit, the pediatrician suggested she may have injured herself and suggested we encourage her to use her left hand. We did. As the summer progressed, we noticed her walk appeared awkward. By September, she had more of a limp, but she did not always limp. Kaela was 12 and was quickly developing into a young lady. Some of the signals were assumed to be hormones or a growth spurt. In other words, it seemed perhaps...normal. Yet we were very concerned. We picked up on a change in her smile. She smiled deeper on the right side of her face. She struggled with fine motor skills like buttoning a shirt or coat. We made an appointment with the Pediatrician immediately.
We visited the pediatrician in early November of that year. After seeing Kaela, the pediatrician referred us to a neurologist. We visited with one on a Thursday. Once the neurologist evaluated Kaela, he scheduled us for an MRI the following day. We had the 1st set of many MRI's done. Once the MRI was complete, the neurologist met with us. He showed us the results. The images showed a mass in her brain. The mass appeared to be pressing against her brain stem. This was the cause of Kaela's symptoms. The news was shocking. Kaela was there with us. All we can say is she was one brave little girl.
The neurologist informed us there was a pediatric neurosurgeon in the building. He had spoken with the doctor and the doctor agreed to see us. This could be considered a coincidence. We know it was one of God's many blessings. The neurosurgeon met with us and provided some information and guidance. He let us know that the mass was likely a tumor and the next step would be a biopsy. We had the biopsy done in early December. We received the results of the biopsy approximately one week later. The mass was a Juvenile Pilocytic Astrocytoma. We proceeded with surgery in early January 2012. The surgeon was able to remove approximately half of the tumor. In May of 2012, we learned the Tumor had increased in size an a second surgery was scheduled. The second surgery was more aggressive. This time approximately 90% of the tumor was removed. Kaela underwent 18 months of chemotherapy treatments and quarterly MRI's. Her tumor remains stable to this day. We are doing MRI's every 6 months. She struggles with fine motor skills and has ataxia in her left arm and hand. This being said, she is a survivor and is doing very well. God id good.
I want to continue to support St. Baldricks as I know where the money goes. At the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, they do one thing, and they do it well: They fund childhood cancer research. St. Baldrick's awarded more than $23.2 million in 2015.
Now I need your help! Will you make a donation? Every dollar makes a difference for the thousands of infants, children, teens, and young adults fighting childhood cancers.
