“I will never forget the date June 6, 2020,” says Liz. “I heard those words a parent prays they will never, ever have to hear.” Amirah, Liz’s ten-year-old daughter had just been diagnosed with cancer - Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.
For three weeks prior to the diagnosis, Amirah had been running a low grade fever on and off, and had been experiencing extreme muscle pains in her lower back and legs - to the point where she could barely walk. After a few visits to the doctor and a couple of visits to the emergency room, the family was referred to Pediatrics at Windsor Regional Hospital. Some alarming levels had been discovered in Amirah’s bloodwork.
Three days later, Amirah’s mom was pulled aside by their doctor.
“I knew what he was going to tell me. Your daughter has cancer,” Liz remembers. “He consoled me and stayed with me until I settled.” The family was given two hours to go home and pack to get ready to go to Children’s Hospital in London. That first stay was predicted to be a minimum of four weeks.
“My husband and I just stared at each other,” Liz explains. They went home and packed. “After that, it was a blur. I do not remember the ride to London or anything.”
They arrived in London at 10 pm that night and their frightening new life began.
Liz describes the staff as amazing from day one: “They became our new family. We learned things I never thought in a million years I would ever learn, from how to measure urine, how to read bloodwork, learning all the chemo meds and all the side effects, to giving my daughter insulin four times a day at one point.”
This became a new life for the family, made even harder by the fact that they had to leave their other two daughters and their granddaughter in Windsor.
Amirah and her family finally got to go home on July 13th, but on the 14th, they were right back in Windsor Regional Hospital. Amirah had spiked a very high fever. Her port had become infected and she went septic. Back to London the family went to get a new port and get rid of the infection. Thankfully, Amirah was able to fight it off.
Since then, Liz describes their childhood cancer journey as being filled with a lot of ups and a lot of downs. Seeing her daughter so sick from chemo was hard, as was Amirah’s weight loss, hair loss and, worst, the loss of her smile. “It was so difficult to see,” Liz explains, “but we had to be strong for our girl.”
Amirah is in maintenance now and she is doing great. She’s back to riding her bike, making TikToks, and FaceTiming friends, and her hair has grown long. But, most importantly, Amirah’s smile has returned.
“Thank God for the nurses, doctors, social workers and moms I have met along the way, because there is no way I could have done it alone,” Liz says. “Childcan has helped us tremendously through this - financially and just being there. Whether it was gas cards, food cards, cafeteria vouchers…Lorraine always makes sure I’m ok and checks up on us, which I am truly grateful for!! And Renee was there for us in London with messages, phone calls and she even went for a walk with me when I was on my way to a break down. This organization is amazing! Thank you for all you do!!”