Lesley’s Leukemia Treatment

On April 2nd, 2019, Lesley and my brother Shaun celebrated their 8th wedding anniversary. The following week she was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia. It was a whirlwind for several days while she was poked and prodded to figure out exactly what type of Leukemia she had and how best to treat it. She underwent numerous blood tests, a bone marrow biopsy, EKGs, echocardiograms, and more. She had been feeling sick since mid-March, suffering from strep throat, but after her 10 days of antibiotics she still had a fever and her heart was constantly racing. She felt very fatigued which was uncommon for her, and her heart rate was in the 120s just walking to the bathroom. Their family doctor, John Fye, ordered some blood tests the afternoon of Monday, April 8th. Thank goodness for him and Dr. Pam at the Family Medical Center in Seymour because after test results came back, Dr. Pam informed her of the likely diagnosis of Leukemia and Lesley was immediately sent up to IU Health University Hospital in Indianapolis that night. At around 10pm on Thursday, April 11th she began her chemo treatment. She will be taking two different types of the drug, one for just 15 minutes a day for the first three days, and the other is administered over 24 hours for seven days. Then she will have around three weeks of recovery time at the hospital since her immune system will be almost totally wiped out. After that she will definitely have at least one follow-up treatment, and possibly more, depending on the results. We want to say thank you to those who have offered their thoughts and prayers for Lesley's full recovery. I know I have heard some people say thoughts and prayers is just a meaningless phrase people use when there's nothing they can do, but we don't feel that way at all. We welcome and are humbled by the support we have already received and thank you in advance for your continued prayers for Lesley. Our entire family is just putting the whole situation in the hands of the staff and Doctors at IU Health as well as in God's hands. We are told this is one of the best hospitals in the United States for Leukemia treatment. The doctors have been very positive and all are optimistic for a positive outcome in wiping out the cancer.

Thank you for your love and support during this difficult time.