The Diagnosis

Today Millie was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma.
Here is what CureSearch.Org says about this cancer: Ewing sarcoma is the second most common tumor of the bone. It most often affects bones of the pelvis, the tibia, fibula, and femur, and can also begin in the soft tissues. This disease most often occurs in adolescents, with nearly half of cases arising between the ages of 10 and 20.

We visited the specialist, "Dr. Phil" who interpreted the MRI and biopsy to us. All findings supported Ewings Sarcoma as the cause. Dr. Phil showed us that the tumor is approximately 30.5 mm in width, and has not touched the tibia or the knee.

He described the typical treatment plan to us, which would start with 3 months of chemotherapy to shrink and stop the tumor, then he'd perform the tumor-removing surgery on Millie's leg. After surgery, there would be another 3 months of chemotherapy. He was very optimistic and compassionate- and even mentioned that Millie would be able to stay in school and would recover from surgery in 6 weeks or so.

He then referred us to, and got us an appointment in, the pediactric oncology group. We ate some quick lunch in the cafeteria and headed over to this other building.

The waiting room in the pediactric oncology area is bright and airy- the artwork is sunshiney and there is a beautiful fishtank and children's tables. I found it difficult to show my heartbreak and tears in the company of two brave kids waiting for their chemotherapy appointments. I realized, looking at Millie playing happily with her full head of wavy hair and energetic laughter, that she would be soon just like these other kids.

I guess that was optimistic of me, as we soon found out that the treatment for Ewings is much more intense than many other cancers, and outpatient or home-treatments are not a possibility.

We soon met one of the pediactric oncologists handling our case- Dr. Anjali Sharma who was kind and compassionate and tried not to overwhelm us.

The hardest news was that all of Millie's chemotherapy will be "inpatient" and administered durin hospital stays that will be 3-5 days in length and alternate every other week. This makes it impossible for her to stay in school.

The danger of Ewings is that it can become resistant to one type of chemotherapy drug, so a combination and intense dosage of 5 drugs are used.

Our next steps are to get a CT Scan, Bone Scan, Blood work to see if there is evidence of spreading of the cancer. Next Wednesday, December 23, (my Mom's birthday), we will meet with Dr. Sharma to discuss our entire chemotherapy treatment plan.

At this point, she'll check in to the hospital for her first round on December 28. At this time, they'll install a "Center Line Broviac" into an artery in her chest to manage an easy "plugin" for administering medicine and chemotherapy, as well as for drawing blood. They will also take a bone marrow sample for further testing to see if the cancer has gotten into her bone marrow.

Everyone is hoping that this cancer is localized- that it has not spread. If so, her chances of surviving this are upwards of 80%. We love stories of Ewings Sarcoma survivors- there are many!