Why we fight.

[angledge]

For the last eight months, I have been following the struggles of one child battling leukemia. Her name is Sydney Thweatt, & her parents have been keeping this blog since she was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia last year.

Today is Sydney's birthday. She is eight years old.

She is having part of her lung removed today. She is suffering from complications caused by graft-versus-host disease following her bone marrow transplant.

I know Sydney & her family only through the internet, & only because Team in Training asked for volunteers to donate blood for her last December. They have been through so much. AML is a fearsome diagnosis: the five-year survival rate for people under 15 is 54.1%. However, because of research funded in part by activities like TNT, leukemia survival rates are continuously improving (14% in 1963, 35% in 1977, and 50% in 2003).

I hope & pray that Sydney will be in that 54.1%. The truth is, she is a very sick little kid right now. I've already given her some blood, now what I can give her is support via Team in Training.

And for that I need all of you.

52 days to the triathlon.

Comments

[susimoscoso.livejournal.com]

keep up the good work!

when i ran the nyc marathon, i ran as part of fred's team to raise money for sloan kettering. my foot broke at mile 6, but i kept going because i knew the kids i was running for would be waiting outside the hospital at mile 17 with their iv poles to cheer on the fred's team runners. i broke down in tears when i got there, those kids are so brave.

[angledge.livejournal.com]

Sydney is being treated at Sloan-Kettering. She's been there for over a year.

[susimoscoso.livejournal.com]

i saw that on her web site - it made my cry. :*( i hope she recovers quickly from her surgery.

[steftrump.livejournal.com]

my mom met my dad at sloan-kettering. she worked there as a secretary after coming to america from germany. according to my uncle andy, she thought it was my uncle mike walking down the hall. (o? did she have a crush?) she said, 'hi, mike!'. my father replied, 'i'm not mike. i'm peter.' and the rest is history.


best wished to the little girl. i can't imagine.


stef

[angledge.livejournal.com]

my mom met my dad at sloan-kettering.

I never knew that!

best wished to the little girl. i can't imagine.

Her parents posted again - she made it through the surgery & is doing as well as can be expected. I have been following her story for months, & I cannot believe how tough this little girl has been. She is incredible.