Luke's Fight Against Lymphoma

December 2018, Luke began not feeling well with chest tightness and pain.  We went to an urgent care where they originally diagnosed him with pneumonia. A few weeks had gone by, and Luke was not feeling or getting any better so we continued to seek out other doctors where he was continuously told, "You should get better, here's more medicine."

Feb 26th,  Luke sought out yet another urgent care visit but this time letting the doctor know that nothing had helped his pain and something else must be going on.

After completing a CT scan, Luke was admitted to the hospital for 4 blood clots in his lungs and a mass in his chest.  

He was transferred from Progress West to Missouri Baptist, where he would see a pulmonologist to help figure out what was going on in his body.  Luke had many tests completed including a bronchoscopy which would help determine what the mass in his chest was. 

After what seemed like a forever wait.  Luke's pulmonologist told us that he had a form of B Cell Lymphoma, but this is all we would know at the time.

We met with his oncologist the next day to talk more about what was to come next.  He continued to have tests completed and had his first PET scan the next week.  We were also informed that not enough tissue sample had been taken from the bronchoscopy, and that they needed to perform a mediastinoscopy to achieve clear pathology reports. Luke then had this operation the following Monday, March 11th.

March 14th, 2019 we learned his diagnosis...Primary Mediastinal B Cell Lymphoma.

Primary Mediastinal B Cell Lymphoma is a rare and aggressive form of Lymphoma, mostly affecting young adults and more common in women.   The survival rate of this lymphoma after therapy is over 90%, even given it's aggressive characteristics. Chemotherapy for Primary Mediastinal B Cell Lymphoma is a more intense therapy than most treatments. 

Luke starts chemotherapy on March 22, 2019, two days after he will have a surgery to have a chemo port put in his chest.  This port will allow a more convenient and safer way to administer chemotherapy throughout his entire treatment.  We learned that he will initially start chemo at the hospital for 7 hours.  He will then be sent home with a pump that will administer additional chemotherapy at home over the next 96 hours.  Luke will then go back to the hospital where they will administer the last chemo drug for around 30 minutes.  This will stretch his chemotherapy over a 5 day cycle. He will repeat this treatment every three weeks for the next 18 weeks. 

We are raising money to help cover the costs of Luke's ongoing medical bills and every day costs of living.  Luke is not able to continue working due to the demanding schedule and intensity of his chemotherapy.  Family members and loved ones have altered their schedules as well to make sure he has the care he needs.  Luke was also half way through a Police Academy program and was forced to drop due to his diagnosis.  We're also hoping to raise money so he can attend school again, once he is fully recovered!

Every little bit helps Luke get closer to completing his treatment worry and stress free. 

We know how strong he is and we know he is capable of anything, thank you!