The doctors say that Lucy has both Burkitt Lymphoma and lukemia. It's an incredibly fast acting disease. If we hadn't gotten her treatment so fast the situation could be much worse so we are praising the Lord we got her in when we did. She started chemo this morning.
Treatments will be very intense for the next 4-5 months. Two weeks this first round then a break. Then 5 more rounds where she gets chemo roughly everyday for a week and then a 10 day break. There is a 90% survival rate for this type of cancer, so that's encouraging. If everything goes well, the cancer will be dead by Christmas and we will be finished with chemo by late January.
How her body responds to the chemo will determine how quickly the treatment can progress, how long we need to stay in the hospital after each treatment week, and whether we will be able to travel back to Flagstaff during the breaks in treatment. Infection is a huge risk during this time so please be praying for her protection.
There will be a lot of side effects from this chemo, including hair loss. Please be praying for strength for Lucy through this extreme trial. And pray that we support her well as parents.
For now Josiah is staying with my sister and David is with me at night and with various babysitters during the day. These situations may change as needed. Please be praying for our precious boys to handle this time well.
We have been overwhelmed with the generous outpouring of support for our family. It is taking some time to think through what our plan is and what our specific needs are. We will let you know as needs come up. Thank you so so very much for your prayers.
Though it has been hard at times to believe in God's goodness in the face of this, we have also seen him provide in so many ways. We have the most amazing medical team who has been very helpful and compassionate. We have the very best community of people surrounding us in prayer and support. Specifically, Tuesday night, after one of the hardest days so far, I came home to find a prayer group at Katie Lanting's house (where I'm staying). They prayed over me and fortified me just when I needed it for facing the discussion Wednesday of the diagnosis. Our God is personal and He cares. We must cling to this.
Prayer needs:
- Lucy's pain and eating
- That the chemo would be effective
- That Lucy's body would handle the chemo well and the side effects would be minimal
- That God would give Lucy supernatural courage to face this battle and come out with her faith in tact
- For JD and I to somehow care for ourselves as well as Lucy
- For our precious boys to handle this time well and for wisdom for us to care for them as needed.
- For all the logistics of housing and traveling to work out so they won't be a distraction
Thank you again for all your prayers and support!!!! We are so blessed. Feel free to text me questions if you have them. I'll answer when I can.
Caleb Clemmons will be helping coordinate any needs we have that come up. You can contact him at 928-864-9012
Any cards or gifts for Lucy can be mailed to Katie Lanting's house at
3311 W Laurie Ln,
Phoenix, AZ 85051
Something fun:
Lucy has discovered cheesecake. A few days ago JD had some with his meal and he convinced Lucy to try some. Now she asks for it with every meal and talks about it all the time. I think of it as the fuel for her superpower of endurance.
Also, the nurses painted Lucy's nails.
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