During the otherwise normal summer of 2019, Lauren’s family noticed that she wasn’t her usual energetic four-year-old self. She was always up for playing and wasn’t afraid to go for a tumble, but she had some excessive and unexplained bruises, particularly on her legs, as well as a pale complexion. Her mom, Liz, was concerned and felt it best to take her to the doctor to get checked. Her mother’s intuition proved to be right.

The next day, Lauren’s dad, Rick, was at work when Liz relayed the unforgettable news: Lauren’s doctor had called and told the family to get to Children’s Hospital as soon as possible—there was a very good chance that Lauren had leukemia.

Last February, I started to have these headaches, mostly at the front of my head and at my temples. Our pediatrician thought it might be sinus headaches, but recommended a CT, just to be safe. We went to the ER and had the scan.

Point-blank, the doctor there told us, “Good thing that you came; you have a cerebellar tumour.” I went into a sort of shock; I don’t even remember what happened right after hearing this news.

“He is the strongest person I know, and he’s only one,” is how Jakub’s mom, Joanna, describes her son. “I learned the meaning of strength the day he was born.”

In August of 2020, the family received devastating news. The “rash” that Jakub had been experiencing ended up being their worst fear. Cancer.

For most of us, 2020 will be known as the year of COVID. The year that we stopped shaking hands and started wearing masks, that schools, businesses and even borders closed. 2020 was certainly a year that our way of life changed and a year that most would like to forget. This could not be any more of an understatement for Lachlan’s family.

Dax’s story began towards the end of April 2020, when his parents noticed the shells of his ears were crimson red. His Fitbit was reading an accelerated heartbeat of 130 beats per minute, but his blood pressure was extremely low. Dax was prescribed antibiotics and told to wait four or five days to see if any changes occurred.

That lasted two days. At 2 am the morning of May 9th, 2020, Dax woke up with his face completely swollen, crimson in colour, and having difficulty breathing.

Johnny’s mom, Jessica, remembers August 5, 2020 as the day their world was flipped upside down. “Our son woke up completely yellow with blue lips,” she recalls. “He couldn’t walk and had a fever.” Johnny was admitted to the Pediatric Critical Care Unit, and three days later, the diagnosis was made.

Johnny was five years old when he was diagnosed with B cell ALL.

October 27th, 2020 was supposed to be a day of celebration. Laura’s older brother, Phillip, was turning six. The cake was decorated and tacos - a favourite of both the kids - were on the menu. Instead, October 27, 2020 was the day that Laura was diagnosed with PH+ ALL - Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia - at just two years old. From that day on, the family knew their lives would never be the same.

“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.

Megan got very sick in December of 2018. No one had any answers as she went from being the healthiest little girl to being unable to walk. Finally bloodwork revealed devastatingly low counts. Megan was put into hospital and the family put into a new world.

Megan was diagnosed with leukemia at just two years old.

In 2016, Jamie was diagnosed with leukemia.

“I refer to it as the ‘Best Club You Never Wanted to Belong To’,” explains Jamie’s mom. “All of those families go through the same kind of pain, and mental anguish, and emotional and physical exhaustion. You can relate to those families and those parents on a completely different level than you can with anybody else.”

One morning, Layla woke up with her eye closing shut. Trying not to panic, her family took Layla immediately to the ER. An MRI revealed that there was a mass on her right side, just below her brain.

Once admitted to LHSC’s Children’s Hospital, a myriad of tests and procedures confirmed that Layla had Stage 4 Orbital Embryonal Rhabdomyosarcoma, a highly malignant, soft-tissue tumour.

Keiran was diagnosed with a hepatoblastoma, liver cancer, on Valentines Day 2019.

“When they sit you down and tell you that, it’s surreal…it’s almost an out of body experience,” recalls his dad.

It seemed Josephine had been feeling extraordinarily tired. She began uncharacteristically falling asleep in class and sleeping more often than usual at home. She would start to feel shortness of breath or feel her heart racing without cause. We decided a trip to the pediatrician was in order…

Bentley had just completed Junior Kindergarten and, being a typical five-year-old, he was feeling the freedom of a summer stretched out in front of him. His family was on their way to a vacation when his parents noticed increased bruising on his legs. While away, Bentley also developed petechiae. It would resolve itself overnight, only to reappear in new spots.

Justin and his family had just returned from a vacation on Manitoulin Island. A musician, 17-year-old Justin had a weekend of playing ahead of him when he started to feel, as he describes it, “off”. His mom, Lorraine, decided a visit to the clinic was in order, hoping that blood tests would offer an answer to their concerns. Bloodwork and x-rays taken, Justin and his family awaited the results. The call came at 9:00 o’clock that evening.

On September 9th, 2017, one week into the new school year, a large lump was found in Brooklyn’s left forearm. Her family made a trip to the local hospital’s emergency department, where they immediately did x-rays and an ultrasound. On October 25th, Brooklyn was diagnosed with Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma, a very aggressive rare cancer, in her arm and a spot in her lung.

Celina is the true definition of a hero, especially to her parents, George and Krystal. She had never once been sick or even had so much as a fever. Not until September 18, 2017. After that, their world was forever changed.

On October 10th, 2017, at only 10 months old, Celina was diagnosed with a very aggressive, malignant brain tumour.