Hello and welcome to Team Lucas! Lucas is fighting for his life and needs your help.

Lucas is a six-year-old CANCER WARRIOR who lives in Austin, Texas with his parents, big brother Jack (9), and little sister Dylan (4 and a future hero). He is a sports fanatic and a die-hard Boston sports fan (thanks to his mom Erin). He can be found cheering on the Red Sox and Celtics any chance he can as well as his parents’ alumni, the Texas Longhorns.

On July 31st, 2020, Lucas was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). AML is a RARE cancer, affecting less that 500 children per year in the United States. Lucas immediately underwent a first round of chemotherapy that was unsuccessful in eradicating the cancer cells from his bones. At the end of 28 days of chemo, 60% cancer still remained. Round two called for a more aggressive and intense plan. It involved targeted FLT3 drugs and adult level chemotherapy that have only been used in trials with some children. They are currently evaluating the effect of this treatment and we are keeping our fingers crossed.

With AML the white blood cells produced in Lucas's bone marrow are abnormal and do not become healthy cells. These abnormal cells are unable to fight off infection and can be life threatening. Not only is AML exceptionally rare in children, but the mutations of Lucas's cancer are even more rare and unique (FLT3 Non-ITD N676K - less than 20 adolescent cases per year). All pediatric cancers are considered rare and therefore underfunded, under researched, and information about these cases isn't widely shared nor publicized, even within the medical community.

Inevitably, Lucas will need a Bone Marrow Transplant. The good news is we have already found a perfect match in his sister Dylan (hence the hero title above), but we need to get Lucas into remission first. We must find a treatment plan that targets Lucas’s exact mutation and eradicates the cancer in his bones. To learn more about Lucas’s specific cancer type and share any pertinent information that might help connect them with other families, please visit this page:  https://www.lucasbear.org/beat-aml.

The Gourley family decided to relocate to Houston so that Lucas can receive the best care and treatment at MD Anderson Cancer Center. Erin and Brian are solely focused on saving Lucas’s life and being present for Jack and Dylan. They are switching roles every 72 hours at the hospital entrance and only allowed to be with each other for about 15 minutes because Lucas is at constant risk of spiking a fever or other things escalating due to the nature of AML. Their ability to earn income has been severely impacted and the expenses are mounting. Insurance is only covering partial costs of some of Lucas's treatment, as well as the clinical trials and drugs that are in their future. They are doing all of this amidst a pandemic and have limited help due to quarantining restrictions and fear of infection.

Lucas is a brave warrior but has a long road ahead of him. This fight will be exhausting on all fronts, but we will do whatever it takes to save Lucas and get him the care he needs. It can take years to recover from the financial devastation that childhood cancer treatment can have on a family. We have started this GoFundMe page as a way to ease some of the financial burden the Gourley family is facing and take a bit of the worry off their plates. 

We understand that this year has been hard on many people, so if you cannot support financially, please continue to pray for Lucas and his family. Erin and Brian are eternally grateful for all the love and support they have already received, even from people they don’t know. 

Thank you in advance and please reach out to one of us if you have any questions or other ways to help. 

With much gratitude and hope, 

Betsy Flanagan & Kathy Sutherland
(friends and prayer warriors)