About three weeks later, Cierra started having uncontrollable vomiting and stomach pain. We went to the doctor who said that it was just an infection due to her breathing tube during surgery. We went home with medicine and were back four days later with debilitating pain. She had lost 30 pounds in a month. We went to the ER three more times the next week for IV fluids, and after a CT scan, they found a blockage in her small bowel. We went via ambulance to MU Women’s and Children’s hospital in Columbia, MO. They thought that the blockage was just some inflamed scar tissue from her nose surgery.
After four days and two NG tubes, we were sent home. The next week nothing changed, so I took her back up and told them we were not leaving until we got her fixed. Cierra was scheduled for surgery that night to remove the mass. The removal of the mass revealed a 4-6 cm tumor. She was diagnosed with Stage 2 Burkitt’s Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. Cierra went through 2 rounds of chemotherapy. She lost all of her hair and lost more weight. She lost a total of 56 pounds throughout all of this. We had a scare the week of thanksgiving when her PET scan came back abnormal, so she was sent to surgery and a total of 2 ft. of her small bowel was removed. As of today, she has been in remission for 8 months!
Softball is her main love, but she also loves tennis and hanging out with friends. Luke Bryan and Brantley Gilbert are her favorite musicians. Our theme song is Brantley’s song “One Hell of an Amen” because it’s about fighting cancer. Cierra would like to be a child life specialist when she’s older
Every child who has been diagnosed with childhood cancer inspires us to Rally On to find better treatments with fewer long-term side effects and, ultimately, cures. Please join us in the fight against childhood cancer by making a donation or setting up your own Rally fundraiser today.
