Motherly instincts may be what save the life of seven-year-old Kylee Jewers.
The Grade 3 student at Ecole Alliance St-Joseph in Chelmsford is a cancer survivor. It was her mother's instinct that told her doctors were wrong in diagnosing a lump on her shoulder as just a cyst.
About two years ago, Josée Jewers was putting her daughter to bed. They were going through their regular bed-time routine when Josée found a lump on
Kylee's shoulder, about the size of a Skittle, she said.
“I panicked,” she said. “I work in health care, and I figured something had to be wrong.”
Josée and Kylee paid a visit to their family physician, who told them not to worry, and that it was only a cyst.
“My mom always told me to follow my instincts, and my motherly instinct told me I wanted it out,” she said. “It grew probably four times its original size in six weeks. I knew it was aggressive, so we took it out, and then we got the pathology report back, and overnight, our entire lives changed.”
The test results came back positive as a sarcoma that, actually, no one had ever seen before, she said, because the cell structure was so elaborate. They were sent to SickKids. Kylee had her first surgery about three months after her diagnosis. Doctors took out everything they needed to, and tests showed she was clear, Josée said.
About three months later, they went for a routine checkup, and again, everything was clear, she said.
“Eight weeks after that, we went for another test and found a mass in her lungs. She had to go for surgery to remove that mass to find out what it was, and it came back positive that it was the same tumour that was on her shoulder.”
It had metastasized, she said, and there was no other option than chemotherapy. Kylee is now a year and a half post-chemo, and she goes for routine checkups to make sure it doesn't metastasize again.
“It will be five years until we can say she's cancer free, but but we pray and stay positive every day,” Josée said. She's been so amazing through it all. She's great, and is very positive.”
Josée and Kylee were special guests at the launch of the 10th annual Teddy Bear Picnic Auction at Cambrian College. The event raises funds for childhood cancer research. It's a partnership between Cambrian College and the Canadian Cancer Society, Sudbury and District Unit.
Over the past nine years, the picnic has raised more than $110,000. Students in Cambrian's Police Foundations program play a key role in organizing the event and in the fundraising.
Businesses and individuals purchase teddy bears and donate them for the auction. Bears are often accompanied by gift cards and coupons from the businesses that donate to the auction.
“With fundraisers like the Teddy Bear Picnic, we, as a community, can come together to help fight pediatric cancer,” said Police Foundations student Megan Howard.
This year, the Teddy Bear Picnic happens Nov. 5 at 11 a.m. at Cambrian College.
