Abby's Journey

As a first time mom to a beautiful, loving, smiley 3 year old, you never imagine something like cancer would strike your baby. November 3rd 2014 forever changed mine and my husband’s lives. The tough part was, Abby had no idea what was going on because she had no symptoms. It was a normal Monday morning getting ready for school and work. My husband Aaron, found a lump on Abby’s belly while getting her dressed. We immediately went to our Pediatrician and from there to Phoenix Children’s Hospital. After several test and scans, the ER Doctor explained it was cancer. It was incredibly hard to grasp! You ask yourself is this real or are they mistaken? How can they know this quickly?

We immediately went into survival mode and knew this couldn’t bring Abby down. She is way too happy of a child. Two days later we were in surgery to remove her kidney and a grapefruit sized tumor. The Doctors explained it as Wilm’s Tumor which is a rare childhood cancer effecting ages 2-4. The survival rate was 90%, which is very good. Once Abby recovered from Surgery, she was due to start chemotherapy. This was to happen within 14 days and we started exactly on the 14th day after her surgery. Thanksgiving and Christmas had a completely different meaning to the Newby household!

Our experience with the hospital has been amazing and we couldn’t ask for better Nurses and Doctors. We cherish everyday with Abby and can’t get over how life changes in a blink of an eye. We are in week 10 out of 19 for Abby’s treatment and she is doing so well. Losing hair and being nauseated are the worst of the side effects so far and we count ourselves lucky. All tests are looking favorable and we have been blessed with so many wonderful people along the way! Abby was chosen for the Make-a-Wish Foundation and is thinking about what she wants when she is finished with treatment and after she has KICKED CANCERS BUTT!!!!!

-Audrey