A brief history
To everyone reading this, thank you so much for taking the time to stay updated on what is going on with our sweet daughter, Gabrielle. I'll just give a brief summary of how we got where we are today. Although the process seemed to take forever, looking back, I realize that in a matter of two months our lives completely changed.
Our first inclination that something was wrong came sometime in November 2010. We noticed a very slight swelling in Gabrielle's eyelids in the morning that didn't seem to diminish throughout the day. Thus began our search for an explanation. During our extensive visits to allergists, dermatologists, endocrinologists, and geneticists as well as our general pediatricians, we continued to notice an increase in the swelling. It became quite severe in the mornings fading off to a general puffiness during the day. After MRIs and Xrays and labwork galore we came across an acid in her urine that led us to Hematology/Oncology. It was at this appointment that a mass was felt in her abdomen on the right side of belly. After an MRI of her chest, abdomen and pelvis, a large football sized tumor was found in the right side of her abdomen and extending into her spine. On Thursday, January 20th 2010, just one month before her 2nd birthday, Gabrielle was diagnosed with stage 3, intermediate risk neuroblastoma, a very rare form of childhood cancer.
We have already received so many messages of prayers and support and are so very grateful for the response of so many people. We have an amazing group of family and friends (and even many people that we don't personally know) that are offering to help. We know that we have a very long, hard road ahead of us but trust that God is in control and even now knows the outcome of this journey for Gabrielle. Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Gabrielle has a little brother arriving in just a couple of months and we know that in the midst of the difficulty of juggling a newborn and a child with cancer, he will be a blessing and a comfort to this family and to his big sister.
p.s.
Jackson Levi Asher was born on April 5, 2011 at 7lb 15oz. It was a rough beginning but he is now the happiest baby I have ever met and Gabrielle is so in love with him!
Our first inclination that something was wrong came sometime in November 2010. We noticed a very slight swelling in Gabrielle's eyelids in the morning that didn't seem to diminish throughout the day. Thus began our search for an explanation. During our extensive visits to allergists, dermatologists, endocrinologists, and geneticists as well as our general pediatricians, we continued to notice an increase in the swelling. It became quite severe in the mornings fading off to a general puffiness during the day. After MRIs and Xrays and labwork galore we came across an acid in her urine that led us to Hematology/Oncology. It was at this appointment that a mass was felt in her abdomen on the right side of belly. After an MRI of her chest, abdomen and pelvis, a large football sized tumor was found in the right side of her abdomen and extending into her spine. On Thursday, January 20th 2010, just one month before her 2nd birthday, Gabrielle was diagnosed with stage 3, intermediate risk neuroblastoma, a very rare form of childhood cancer.
We have already received so many messages of prayers and support and are so very grateful for the response of so many people. We have an amazing group of family and friends (and even many people that we don't personally know) that are offering to help. We know that we have a very long, hard road ahead of us but trust that God is in control and even now knows the outcome of this journey for Gabrielle. Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Gabrielle has a little brother arriving in just a couple of months and we know that in the midst of the difficulty of juggling a newborn and a child with cancer, he will be a blessing and a comfort to this family and to his big sister.
p.s.
Jackson Levi Asher was born on April 5, 2011 at 7lb 15oz. It was a rough beginning but he is now the happiest baby I have ever met and Gabrielle is so in love with him!