A happy, beautiful 3 year old girl should be thinking of what dress she will wear, candy, playing barbies, running in the park, colouring – all without a care in the world.
Unfortunately for Meera, things are different. She is a very beautiful, smart, happy girl… with Cancer. Cancer that she DID beat, has now come back. She has a very rare form of childhood cancer. In Meera’s mommy’s words from their pledge site…
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This campaign is to offset costs incurred to the family of Meera Porter due to cancer and a very invasive surgery needed on her face to remove all affected areas in order to save her life.
August 2011, at only 22 months old Meera was diagnosed with an VERY agressive type of cancer called Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma, right on her face. It grew so rapidly within weeks it went from just under her left nostril to up along the side of her nose towards her eye. She then started 40 weeks of chemotherapy and endured severe burns from 28 radiations on her face. We were told that any areas affected by radiation will not grow and would require surgery when she grew older. That was something we were ‘ok’ with. We were also told that if it came back, there was nothing they could do. That was something we were not ok with. In June 2012 Meera completed chemotherapy and the family was under the impression the cancer was gone.
Just before she was scheduled to have her port and gtube (feeding tube) removed, not even a week before my maternity leave was over, which meant I was about to return to work, I discovered a lump on her nose, again. Dr’s believed it was scar tissue but took our concerns seriously and ran tests like imaging and another biposy and found it indeed came back. Another surgery was performed less then two weeks later to remove as much of a clear margin as possible. We had the decision to either use the study chemotherapy drugs or the standard. They were prepared to choose the study, until the Dr’s most recently have told them they have a hope of beating this by basically removing her face. They have to go back and refrence the scans from original diagnosis and remove all the areas affected by this. And the family would no longer have the oppurtunity to choose the study chemo, Meera would need to use the standard. As long as her next set if scans continue to come back negitive for any metastasis this surgery is an option to save her life, even if she wont look like our beautiful princess anymore.
This means supplies not covered like feeding bags to feed her though her gtube again, and replacement gtube buttons and adapters syringes will be out of the families pocket, this doesnt even include loss of wages from not being able to work as we are so stressed we cant even work. These decisions have never been easy for us, and need your support emotionally and financially.
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We were at a family wedding just a week ago and this sweet little girl, who walked up to me and grabbed my hand and ever so quietly, but so sweet says “come…”. Although she is family, my husband has a big family and we haven’t seen them, thankful for pictures on Facebook!
So… as many of you know Jaz joined into the Movember fun this year! Even though he typically does have a goatee he shaved off clean on November 1st – a first in 12 years!!!
Knights of Princess Meera Movember was created … by a group of college guys! How awesome is this! They posted the group yesterday and already there is over 200 members and its still growing!!!
Without a doubt… Jaz IS participating so we are asking our family and friends to please pledge him for this wonderful cause! You can pledge him in person (we have pledge forms) or you can pledge and donate online – very simple…
http://www.indiegogo.com/Meeracles?c=home
Any amount you could give will help. We will of course be giving our own pledge/donation at the end of Movember for this beauty! If you do not feel comfortable paying a donation/pledge online with your credit card, however would like to pledge Jaz to help out Meera please mail us a cheque to PO Box 358 Mount Forest, ON N0G 2L0. We will deposit the money and then pay it online to the plege site.
I also spent yesterday decluttering in a very large way in our kids rooms and added to the huge pile of clothing to take to our local consignment store (clothing from both our kids and both my husband and I) Stumbled Upon… this consignment store takes your clothing and sells it, paying you a % of the sale. I am going to donate 100% of these proceeds to Meera!!! Feels so very good 🙂
At this moment, the only option for Meera is surgery, which will include removing parts of her face – drastically changing her appearance. This is not only going to be hard for Meera, but her family as well, including her baby sister who just turned 1. She will require plastic surgery to help reconstruct her face.
Meera you are loved by SO many!
Cancer has touched (and taken) so many of our loved ones… just 2 months before our wedding my mother in law lost her fight to Cancer 😦 When I was young I remember visiting my granpa in the hospital, travelling to Tennessee to spend Thanksgiving and sharing Christmas together in my grandparents bedroom while he was sick and in bed … Please help us do what we can to help Princess Meera!
