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Welcome to Katelyn Benson's website! This has been created to keep family and friends up to date with the latest news regarding our brave daughter.

At the age of three, Katelyn was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma Stage 4, a rare childhood cancer for which there is no cure. She was diagnosed on Monday 16th May 2005 and since then has undergone 8 rounds of chemotherapy, a 5 hour tumour resection surgery, further high-dose chemotherapy followed by a stem cell transplant, radiotherapy and 6 rounds of Accutane (Retinoic Acid). In September 2006, we discovered that Katie had relapsed and so the battle begins again.

Despite the devastating prognosis, we have great faith that our precious daughter will be granted her miracle cure. Thank you for joining us on our rollercoaster journey. Words cannot express the uplifting joy we feel to know we have such a wonderful "team" standing behind us every step of the way. We thank each and every one of you for the endless love, support and prayers.

We are praying for a miracle!!

Children with cancer are like candles in the wind who accept the possibility that they are in danger of being extinguished by a gust of wind from nowhere; and yet, as they flicker and dance to remain alive, their brilliance challenges the darkness and dazzle those of us who watch their light.

Friday, September 15, 2006

Katie has relapsed

The "honeymoon period" with baby Sophie has been cut short by some crushing news. Katie has relapsed. The three most awful words I've ever had to write. The spot which was visible on the MIBG scan has increased to 3 cm. Back in June, it appeared Katie's CT scan was negative but the latest CT scan very clearly shows a cluster of tumour cells. If that wasn't bad enough, we learned that Katie's relapse is not isolated as she has bone marrow disease. This is devastating news. Obviously we fully knew the high relapse rate but this has hit us like a tonne of bricks. Jason and I are meeting with Katie's consultant to fully discuss the options. We have not told Katie or Josh about the relapse and we'd appreciate it if no one would mention this until Jason and I have had a chance to discuss it with them.

Please pray for Katie, and for us to make the best possible decisions regarding her treatment. Please also pray for the other NB warriors especially Christi Thomas who is nearing the end of her brave 4 year battle. There are NO WORDS to truly express how we feel right now.

Posted by Nicole on Friday, September 15, 2006