Avery H.
Illinois
Birth Date - October 31, 2016
Diagnosis - Retinoblastoma
Avery's Story
After taking Avery to the eye doctor on May 15th with concerns of a lazy eye, we were referred to Lurie Childrens Hospital. We left that day only knowing that she was blind in her left eye, and that there was something putting pressure on both retinas. From our doctor's experience, she had said it usually is tumors. We were absolutely devastated.
The next day we went to Lurie Hospital and the doctors examined Avery's eyes and diagnosed her with Retinoblastoma. Our entire lives changed in that moment. On May 17th, Avery had her first EUA (evaluation under anesthesia). That was to get photos taken of her eyes to see just how big the tumors were. The news we received was not what we had hoped for. There were several tumors in both eyes. Much more than we had anticipated and the size of them was pretty substantial.
On May 22nd Avery had surgery to insert a venus port into her chest for chemotherapy. They also did an MRI to see if the cancer had spread to her brain or spine. Both are common for this type of cancer. So far it does not appear to have spread. That's the best news we've received.
Chemo has been started. Every month she will have two days of chemo and a EUA to track the tumors and the effect of the chemo. We are taking this one day at a time, and remain very hopeful of preserving Avery's vision in her right eye.
Quilt donated by Cross Stitch Addicts group
