It was October of 2023 when Myrriah knew something was wrong with her four-year-old daughter Kaiya. Her energetic, hilarious, and vibrant little girl just was not herself this last month. Dark circles had begun to form beneath her beautiful blue eyes, she had developed a limp that didn’t have an injury connected to it, and she was struggling to keep up with her soccer team even though she used to out run every teammate. As a nurse, Myrriah had a sick feeling that something was deeply, medically wrong. Yet when she had taken Kaiya to the doctor, they had assured her ‘she just does not look like a child who has cancer’. That was the handle of hope that Myrriah and her husband Adam hung onto. Until October 17th, 2023 when Kaiya ’s pediatrician called regarding the blood work they had done.

“Myrriah, I am so sorry. I was wrong. Kaiya has leukemia.”

The world lurched sideways for the entire Clauson family in that moment and has not stabilized since. Little Kaiya, who was already bravely navigating the challenges of being born with cerebral palsy, has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). One of the most common childhood cancers, ALL is the type of cancer that 3 out of every 4 children with leukemia have, according to the National Cancer Society.

Even though Kaiya is receiving the best medical treatment available, the damage and the trauma is even more insidious. Kaiya must undergo chemotherapy for three years if she has any hope of being cured. Aside from losing her beautiful blond hair, Kaiya bravely struggles with the vicious nausea, the violent vomiting, the low appetite and weight loss, the peripheral neuropathy (a possibly permanent side effect), the intense headaches, aching bone pain, and terrifying hallucinations. And she must grow up shut away in her home, away from anyone who could get her sick or jeopardize her already precarious immune system, watching the world go by through her window.

The Clausons are doing their best to preserve the mental health and stability of the family given these unimaginable circumstances. However, there is another tragic and unjust issue that they need our help with. Even as a registered nurse, Myrriah ’s insurance does not cover most of the medical bills for Kaiya. Certain types of chemo that Kaiya needs to survive cost $500 a pill. The family’s insurance does not cover this. Their family deductible is $40,000 and that does not even cover their co-pays and most of the medications Kaiya needs. The mounting medical debt will reach $120,000 by the time Kaiya makes it to the end of her chemotherapy journey.

Crowd-funding to cover the medical bills of a young child with cancer when both parents work and have insurance is at the intersection of horrific and surreal. But this is Kaiya ’s reality, as it is the reality of many very sick children in our country.

Any small amount you are able to donate towards Kaiya ’s medical bills would be one less straw on the back of this struggling family. If you are not in a position to help financially, please keep Kaiya and her family in your thoughts and prayers.