My name is Matthew McMahon, friend of Melissa & Lucas Spencer. This coming April, I will be shaving my head to raise money for childhood cancer research in name of their daughter Amelia Spencer. Below is the story of how Cancer is affecting Amelia and the Spencer Family’s life.
Please read and choose to make a donation if you can. Every dollar makes a difference for the thousands of infants, children, teens and young adults fighting this horrible disease.
By October 2016 Amelia had been suffering from tummy aches & headaches for a couple of months. After many doctor's visits her pediatrician decided an MRI of her brain would be the first step in trying to find the source of her agonizing pain. Skeptically, Amelia's parents scheduled the MRI, mostly wondering why a simple ultrasound of her tummy wouldn't help to clear the matter. Lucas's brother, Dr. Matthew Spencer, was the trusted radiologist requested to attend the MRI screening that fateful morning while her parents and family stood by waiting to hear the results. Before the screen was half way through Matt had to leave the room and call his fellow radiologists to finish the exam. What happened was Matt was expecting to see the images of grey matter, the intricate pattern of grooves, the valleys and lobes that are the norm of a healthy brain. Instead, he began to see a large white mass; a tumor and large pockets of fluid.
Immediately those images were sent to the University of Rochester's Strong Memorial Hospital, aptly nicknamed "UR Strong", a reputable pediatric surgical and oncology hospital. Before the end of that day the Spencer family had packed their bags, drove in a state of shock for three hours from their home in safe Cooperstown to the big city of Rochester, and had scheduled neurosurgery for their three year-old daughter.
The neurosurgeon, wearing Chewbacca socks after learning Amelia was to be Yoda, and her brother, Hayden, was to be Luke Skywalker, for Halloween a few days after the surgery, painstakingly removed as much of the tumor and masses as he could, sending what was removed immediately to the lab for review.
As Amelia convalesced and was released to spend time at home, the lab called to say that the pathology results were that the tumor is a rare and highly aggressive form of child cancer called a CNS PNET (Central Nervous System Primitive Neuroectodermal Tumor). This diagnosis, a cancer never known to those who love Amelia, came with a lot of questions. It certainly meant that her condition is serious, but most importantly there is a treatment, which means there is hope.
The Spencer and MacNeil families appreciate all of your support and friendship before and since Amelia's diagnosis.
P.S.
I will be attending the Trinity Hall event in Dallas, if you are in NJ and want to become a shavee, feel free to check out the event at Mays Landing Country Club on March 19th.
