Deborah was diagnosed with brain cancer on November 26, 2007. She was admitted into Children’s Hospital that same day. After 3 weeks in the hospital we took Deborah home with us.

How this all came about:

I took Deborah, my seemingly healthy and happy 4 month old, to her well visit to Dr. Zenker’s on November 20, 2007. Dr. Zenker noticed that she had ‘sun setting’ of her eyes and that her head circumference was a little larger than normal. He sent us over to Children’s Hospital immediately for an ultrasound to rule out hydrocephalus. During the ultrasound the technician abruptly left and got the Radiologist. The Radiologist came in to finish the ultrasound and revealed to us that she had a ‘cyst-like formation’ on her cerebellum and they would need a MRI to get a better look. The day after Thanksgiving on November 22, 2007 we went to Children’s for a sedated MRI of her brain. On November 24, 2007 I took Deborah in to see Dr. Zenker because she had developed croup and Dr. Zenker explained to me that Deborah has brain cancer and that he was going to get in touch with the Oncologist at Children’s and they would call me.

We met Dr. Leonard for the first time and he asked us to come into his office. As we walked in his office, we saw on several monitors, our precious 4 month olds brain with a mass of white tumors. He was a very kind-spoken, mild-mannered man and told us in a very gentle way that, in fact, Deborah did have brain cancer.

Our hearts sank and as the tears rolled we found ourselves very overwhelmed by the news we just heard. How could it even sink in…was this real? How could this happen to us? So many thoughts and fears, but we know one thing. God hears our every cry and we trust that He knows what is best for Deborah.

Psalm 61:1-3
Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer. From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy path.

On May 9, 2008, Dr. Leonard ordered a series of big scans. The series includes a complete brain and spine MRI with and without contrast and a lumbar puncture to check for cancer cells within the spinal fluid. The MRI showed that there was no new cancer that had formed or spread and we were only dealing with the one tumor that was left. The tumor itself had grown in all dimensions and seemingly was adhered to the main blood supply in the brain and the surgery would be very risky. We sat and realized that we had a choice to make, a really big choice that could take our precious little one’s life since it was so risky or it could give us a chance at a cure for Deborah if he could get the tumor. The spinal tap did not show any cancer cells, which in itself, is a miracle since back in January there were cells they believed were cancerous.

In response to many requests, the details of Deborah’s donation account have been posted here. The donation account was set up by our good friends, Craig and Dana Robinson. The information is as follows: You may go into any US Bank Branch and ask to make a donation into the DEBORAH L OLNEY DONATION ACCOUNT The money deposited into this account goes towards medical expenses for Deborah that our insurance does not cover. We have limited number of Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Speech therapy visits per year. It also helps cover prescription costs as Deborah is on many medications per month in which we have several that our insurance does not cover at the present time. As always, we appreciate your prayers and support.

On May 27, 2008; Deborah went into a major brain surgery to attempt to get a total resection of the cancerous tumor that was life threatening….however, the surgery itself could claim her life…A choice that we had prayed about, we decided that God was in control and that we would trust that God had a plan for her and this was a door, in fact, that He had opened. The surgery, after 6 hours, was a huge success. Dr. Leonard said that the tumor had encapsulated and he was able to cut it right out only taking a couple of small vessels from Deborah’s brain. What a miracle! As Dr. Leonard gave us the news…as we embraced each other, we were celebrating Deborah’s new claimed life…we were so very thankful that God had given us back our little one.

In June, Deborah started her regimen of chemotherapy that would last a total of 18 months. She has done so very well and is progressing very well physically. She goes to weekly therapy treatments over at Children’s for physical and occupational therapy and is developmentally behind, but making huge strides. She is a very determined, hardworking and very pleasant little girl!

This website is a place to keep up with Deborah’s progress. Please sign the guestbook and look at the photos. There is also a prayer card that you can obtain for free of charge, thanks to Mark and Laura Scott of Texas, as a reminder at how much God has blessed us and to pray for our precious Deborah Lee and our family. To contact me, Amy Olney, please email me at  . Website is courtesy of Getwebbed.net…Thanks, Bruno!

Barton and Amy Olney

Website courtesy of getwebbed.net