Anton was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia on January 9, 2017. Symptoms started in October of 2016 with canker type sores in his mouth that would not heal. By late December, he was experiencing difficulty swallowing and sore throat, which we wrote off to flu symptoms. With no relief, his trouble swallowing led us to the ER on January 7th where initial testing was done. He was transferred to a second hospital via ambulance and put through a battery of tests for three days which ultimately led to a diagnosis of AML. He was transferred to Medical City Dallas January 11th and started aggressive chemo January 13th.
That's the medical bit.
There's so much more to us than cancer, as you can imagine. However, this blog is about processing the immense grief, pain, confusion, and also the hope and life-changing experience that is a cancer diagnosis in your family. Writing is my catharsis.
As you can see, we have two beautiful children. We've been married 16 years. Anton is a vibrant and amazing theatre teacher and coach and has a very devoted following of students/athletes and their families dating back almost twenty years. This process has been eye-opening for us as a family but also extremely humbling and beautiful, as our community, family, and friends have rallied around us in a magnificent way. I call that "circling the wagons". We have been gloriously covered in love and care.
Our hope is that by sharing in a vulerable way what our cancer journey looks like, it will encourage others who might find themselves on the same path or facing any difficult life experience. Who among us doesn't suffer?
Our love to all of you following along,
