Thank you so much for taking a minute to learn about The Kayla Weber Believe Foundation,
a Foundation dedicated to the lives of children battling cancer. This Foundation
was inspired by my beautiful daughter, Kayla Weber. I took Kayla to the pediatrician
for a check-up just before she turned 4 months old – 3 days before Christmas. Her
pediatrician was concerned with the size and feeling of her liver so she sent us
for further testing. Within 12 hours Kayla had enough testing to confirm that she
had Neuroblastoma, a cancer of the nervous system. A CT scan showed that she had
tumors all throughout her abdomen, into her liver and spots on her spine. I still
remember being in that room when the doctor said “cancer” and in the room when my
husband received the phone call with the CT scan results. I remember dropping to
our knees for fear of our child’s life. We didn’t even know what cancer truly meant
much less that it could attack our daughter, an innocent baby girl. Our world was
forever changed that dreadful day. Kayla was admitted the day after Christmas for
a biopsy procedure – the first procedure of thousands to come. This procedure was
unsuccessful and she was left with a bleeding disorder that would threaten to take
her life on several occasions over the next few days. After several blood transfusions
and impending organ failure, she was transferred from Colorado Springs to The Children’s
Hospital in Denver. It was a true miracle that she survived the next two weeks with
complicated emergency trips to the operating room and an immune system that would
not defend her from even the smallest of infections. She was left on a ventilator
for over a month leaving her bed ridden with no possibilities of holding her, feeding
her or even giving her a bath – small treasures that no mother should be denied.
She was finally released from the hospital after several weeks of rehabilitation
and further treatment. We were home, but the battle had truly just begun. Kayla would
continue to receive chemotherapy throughout the summer. It was in July when she started
to exhibit worsening symptoms. A CT scan would show that our worst fear had become
reality. Kayla’s tumors had spread drastically into her lungs, her neck, her pelvis,
her bones and bone marrow. Kayla had become a Stage 4 cancer patient at only 10 months
old. She was immediately placed on a high risk chemotherapy protocol which would
include several rounds of chemotherapy followed by surgery, a very dangerous bone
marrow transplant, radiation therapy, and several other treatments.
Kayla started in on her new treatment plan like the true soldier that she had become.
She was fearless when it came to big dogs, scary noises, strangers in the crowds
… it was the nurses, the needles, the tests, scans and procedures that would often
bring her to tears. Kayla fought so hard, but her cancer was merciless and became
too aggressive for her body to fight with the available treatment options. Even after
several rounds of chemotherapy, the tumors continued to spread, getting closer and
closer to her heart. The tumors were non responsive to chemotherapy and there were
just no options left. I was forced to hold her in my arms and let her pass to Heaven
on December 2, 2007, feeling her skin on my lips one last time.
The Kayla Weber Believe Foundation has risen to carry on Kayla’s fight, a true war
against childhood cancer. There are so many child “warriors” fighting this battle
right now and our mission is to bring awareness and education of childhood cancers
to the forefront, while helping to fund critical research that will take treatment
to a new level!
Please visit other sections of our site to learn more about our Foundation and become
a part of this mission that will save the lives of our children!
Sincerely,
Julie E. Weber
Founder and CEO, The Kayla Weber Believe Foundation
