Be inspired by heroes who shine bright through the darkness of cancer.
Not every blood cancer diagnosis is obvious—especially in kids. When three-year-old Sofia started spending more time on the couch watching movies, her parents didn't think it was anything out of the ordinary. But soon it became all Sofia wanted to do, and she seemed to be resting much more than usual.
In early 2019, four-year-old Ben was constantly getting sick. In a short time, he dealt with strep, an ear infection, and two different strains of the flu. When he started getting pain in his hips that made him unable to walk, his family realized there was something more going on.
In the fall of 2019, life was very active for me and my 4-year-old son, Jarvis. Almost every day after school, we would go to the park so he could run around and play. He was starting to learn to ride bikes when his feet started to hurt. We all know little kids get hurt, but something was different this time.
On June 1, 2017, at ten weeks old, Harper was diagnosed with infantile Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia with the MLL gene rearrangement. With a 10 percent prognosis for survival, she was immediately admitted to our local Children's Hospital, began IV chemo treatment, and enrolled in a brand new LLS-funded clinical trial that ultimately saved her life.
In April 2020, three-year-old Cayden began experiencing leg pain and developed an unusual limp that alarmed his mother, Courtney. Soon, the pain progressed to a stiff neck and loss of appetite. Just two weeks later, after multiple tests and doctor appointments, Courtney and her husband would hear the words that every parent fears: "Your child has cancer." Cayden was diagnosed with Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a high-risk form of blood cancer.
Krew was born a happy and healthy baby boy in September 2017. In February 2018, Krew developed a series of grey spots on his body, so his parents took him to their pediatrician. Later that month, after being referred to a dermatologist, they received confirmation that their precious, five-month-old son had Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML).