Blayne's Battle
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Blayne’s Battle
As a parent, you pray with your whole heart for your child to be happy and healthy. You pray every night your child will never be in Blayne’s shoes. And as 16-year-old, this is the last thing you think could happen to yourself.
In early December 2020, my nephew Blayne Griffin, a sophomore at Central High School thought he had pulled a muscle at football practice. Never one to complain, it took a phone call from a concerned coach to alert his parents that something was not quite right. After several doctor’s visits, and one very important trip to physical therapy, they discovered a large tumor located between his hip bone and belly button. After a biopsy, the diagnosis was a soft tissue sarcoma called a peripheral nerve sheath tumor. It was extremely serious. At St. Jude's at Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital, his team went at the tumor with chemotherapy. They hoped that this would shrink the tumor enough to then have it surgically removed. Three of the seven planned chemo treatments were completed, which caused low blood levels and ANC on top of an already compromised immune system. Scans were performed and it was determined that the tumor had not shrunk.
After countless doctor’s appointments, scans, and second-opinions, his medical team, Blayne, and his family, have decided to try a risky surgery. This eight-to-ten-hour surgery will hopefully remove the tumor which has now grown into his pelvis. The surgeon was very frank when he told the family that Blayne’s life will change forever. They are not sure what the outcome will be, but they have complete faith the Lord will get them through. Blayne, who just months before was enjoying football practice, must now face the fact that he may lose his leg. Blayne has great strength and faith in the Lord and will accept the loss of his leg if it means saving his life.
St. Jude has been an incredible blessing and they have helped immensely. However, the family has accumulated over $50,000 in hospital bills they are not sure will be covered. Now they are facing an extreme surgery and the medical bills will continue to rise. Parents of a sick child should not feel overwhelmed or caught between paying for something their child may need or buying groceries. They need to focus on getting their child better. The prayer is for Blayne to come out of this surgery healed and cancer-free. The reality is that may not happen. Blayne may lose his leg, or have other life-threatening complications during the surgery. We are asking God for the surgery to be a success and for his pelvis to be rebuilt with no more cancer. That is our prayer!
As family, we feel so helpless. We want to fix this for them. Thank goodness Robin and Billy have such a wonderful, strong, family and a large support system of friends. They have only asked for prayers. However, I see my family going through this overwhelming time and I want to help in any way I can. Future issues are unknown and we do not know what Blayne will be facing. If we can help lessen the monetary burden of the medical bills, items not covered by insurance, or any unknown factors that may pop up, that will be one less thing for the family to worry about. We are asking for donations in their time of need. Any and all help will be a blessing. If you are unable to donate, we appreciate prayers and positive thoughts for this precious child and his family.
Lord My God, I called to you for help, and you healed me. -Psalm 30:2
As a parent, you pray with your whole heart for your child to be happy and healthy. You pray every night your child will never be in Blayne’s shoes. And as 16-year-old, this is the last thing you think could happen to yourself.
In early December 2020, my nephew Blayne Griffin, a sophomore at Central High School thought he had pulled a muscle at football practice. Never one to complain, it took a phone call from a concerned coach to alert his parents that something was not quite right. After several doctor’s visits, and one very important trip to physical therapy, they discovered a large tumor located between his hip bone and belly button. After a biopsy, the diagnosis was a soft tissue sarcoma called a peripheral nerve sheath tumor. It was extremely serious. At St. Jude's at Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital, his team went at the tumor with chemotherapy. They hoped that this would shrink the tumor enough to then have it surgically removed. Three of the seven planned chemo treatments were completed, which caused low blood levels and ANC on top of an already compromised immune system. Scans were performed and it was determined that the tumor had not shrunk.
After countless doctor’s appointments, scans, and second-opinions, his medical team, Blayne, and his family, have decided to try a risky surgery. This eight-to-ten-hour surgery will hopefully remove the tumor which has now grown into his pelvis. The surgeon was very frank when he told the family that Blayne’s life will change forever. They are not sure what the outcome will be, but they have complete faith the Lord will get them through. Blayne, who just months before was enjoying football practice, must now face the fact that he may lose his leg. Blayne has great strength and faith in the Lord and will accept the loss of his leg if it means saving his life.
St. Jude has been an incredible blessing and they have helped immensely. However, the family has accumulated over $50,000 in hospital bills they are not sure will be covered. Now they are facing an extreme surgery and the medical bills will continue to rise. Parents of a sick child should not feel overwhelmed or caught between paying for something their child may need or buying groceries. They need to focus on getting their child better. The prayer is for Blayne to come out of this surgery healed and cancer-free. The reality is that may not happen. Blayne may lose his leg, or have other life-threatening complications during the surgery. We are asking God for the surgery to be a success and for his pelvis to be rebuilt with no more cancer. That is our prayer!
As family, we feel so helpless. We want to fix this for them. Thank goodness Robin and Billy have such a wonderful, strong, family and a large support system of friends. They have only asked for prayers. However, I see my family going through this overwhelming time and I want to help in any way I can. Future issues are unknown and we do not know what Blayne will be facing. If we can help lessen the monetary burden of the medical bills, items not covered by insurance, or any unknown factors that may pop up, that will be one less thing for the family to worry about. We are asking for donations in their time of need. Any and all help will be a blessing. If you are unable to donate, we appreciate prayers and positive thoughts for this precious child and his family.
Lord My God, I called to you for help, and you healed me. -Psalm 30:2
Organizer and beneficiary
Renee LeBlanc
Organizer
Baton Rouge, LA
Robin Griffin
Beneficiary