Landry R. - Quilt Finished in 2009
Born: February 21, 2003
Illness: Medulloblastoma
Landry R.'s Story
Written by Landry's mom Shannon in April 2009
Landry was born on February 21, 2003 in Abilene, Texas. She is a blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl that has attracted attention from all people who come in contact with her since she was born. Landry began taking ballet lessons when she was 3 years old and performed her first recital to the Cinderella song "A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes." She was truly a little princess in her blue costume and sparkling tiara. Taking dance has really sparked Landry's interest in performing. She loves to sing and dance around the house.
Landry started kindergarten in the fall of 2008. Because she is a personable little girl, she made a lot of friends easily. It wasn't long into the school year, that Landry began having regular stomach aches. She would complain that her tummy was hurting, but we did not know what to do for relief. A trip to her pediatrician resulted in a suggestion to use an over-the-counter stool softener. Although this did alleviate Landry's bowel issues, her stomach aches continued. At times Landry complained that her "brain hurts" which was disturbing to hear but basically chalked up to the way a 6-year-old describes a headache. Landry also experienced daily bouts of nausea and some vomiting with little substance. It was so hard to understand why she was experiencing these problems and still send her to school each day.
It wasn't until Spring Break when Landry began squinting one of her eyes continuously that we became alarmed. When asked why she was squinting her eye, Landry replied, "Because I see two of things." We had taken a family trip out of town when we noticed the squinting, so first thing Monday morning upon return to Abilene, we made an appointment with her pediatrician. Landry's doctor was also concerned and referred us to an eye doctor for a full examination. He also suggested that an MRI be scheduled as soon as possible.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009, we took Landry to her eye appointment where the doctor said her vision was fine, but there was swelling on her optic nerves. Our pediatrician confirmed that optic nerve swelling is 50/50 - 50 percent chance of some sort of cranial swelling, 50 percent chance of brain tumor. He was unable to obtain an MRI at such short notice, but Landry had a CT scan done within a couple of hours of leaving the eye doctor's office. The results were shared with us within the hour - Landry did indeed have a brain tumor.
We were instructed to go home, pack bags, and meet at the hospital ER, where Landry would be transported by plane to Children's Medical Center. She and her medical team were flown in a six-passenger plane to the hospital and admitted to the PICU by 3:30pm.
The very next day, Landry had a MRI done which confirmed the tumor in her brain, and showed the size of approximately 3.5 centimeters in diameter and the location in the lower part (posterior fossa) of her brain. Surgery was scheduled for Thursday, March 19th. Landry spent approximately 10 hours in surgery to remove her tumor. The surgeon was able to remove 99% of the tumor; however, what remained was attached to her brain stem. Several days later, we learned that the tumor was classified as a medulloblastoma.
Since her resection surgery (tumor removal), Landry has had multiple MRI's, port placement (for later chemotherapy treatments)and then replacement of the port because of a glitch, drain insertion to drain off excess CSF (craniospinal fluid), and a lumbar puncture (spinal tap). The spinal tap did show negative results on cancer cells present in her spinal fluid which is a big positive. Landry, however, has had a very slow recovery after her resection, which is now requiring daily therapies to help her get back to regular function (eating, talking, sitting, standing, etc.)
Landry is soon to begin six weeks of radiation to her spine and brain followed by at least a year of chemotherapy. It will be a long road ahead.
