Biography
Kennedy was born on Nov 4, 1999. Other than being small and suffering
from jaundice she was healthy. The next 12 years were full of all the normal
things kids do...growing, school, sports, making friends, etc. She grew into a
spunky and competitive, preteen. Just after Thanksgiving of 2011, Kennedy got
what we thought was the stomach flu. She was sick for a day and then recovered.
Over the holiday season she had a few more repeated bouts of vomiting but always
recovered. Finally after the third bout, I took her in to the doctor, who
decided to run some blood work. I received a call the following Monday saying
that her liver enzymes were elevated and they scheduled her to have an abdominal
ultrasound. The ultrasound showed a large mass on her liver. We were sent to
Children's Hospital the following morning where she underwent further tests.
They told us that she actually had three tumors and they thought it was
Hepatocellular Carcinoma. They also told us t
hat this type of cancer usually did not respond to chemo was most likely fatal.
As we cried together as a family, I looked Kennedy in the eye and said "Don't
worry Kennedy, there is ALWAYS hope!" With the help of a family member, we got
her into the Mayo Clinic for a second opinion two days later, met with an
amazing pediatric oncologist and decided to pursue treatment there. After more
tests and a biopsy, her diagnosis was confirmed and we also found out that the
reason they thought the cancer started was because her liver was badly damaged
(cirrosis). The doctors ran every test to find out why, but a cause was never
found. We knew the road ahead was tough and the odds were not in her favor, but
we trusted in God and placed her in His healing hands. Because of the love and
concern of family, friends and even strangers, prayer chains were started and
her story spread like wildfire. People from across the US were offering up
prayers and sending us well wishes. She st
arted her chemo a week after her biopsy. It is one of the harshest regimens
there is and consisted of four days in the hospital and the remaining 17 days at
home recovering and taking an oral chemo medication. It was horrible to say the
least. After two rounds, she was scheduled for her first major evaluation.
After all the results were in, we were told that her tumors had shrunk by 50%!
Everyone was shocked, excited and thanking God for the great news! She endured 3
more rounds of chemo and was listed for a liver transplant (which she was denied
at the time of diagnosis). Because of the thoughtfulness and generosity of a
family during what I would imagine to be the worst day of their lives, she
received her gift on May 27, 2012. Her uneventful recovery amazed her medical
teams. As of today, Kennedy is in school full time and enjoying life as a
mostly "normal" 12 year old girl. She takes a lot of medications every day to
prevent rejection and manage some side effects
but those should get less the further she gets from her transplant. She is
looking forward to playing basketball this winter. She has a big evaluation
scheduled Sept 24 so any prayers for continued healing and a cancer free life
would be greatly appreciated! We know God guided our every step and that He is
responsible for her healing. The power of prayer is amazing and we believe that
through God ALL things are possible!