When Turner Fordham entered Westside Middle School in Rocky Face, Georgia, in the fall of 2005, the energetic 12-year-old had never missed a single day of school. With long, strawberry-blonde hair and a winning smile, Turner appeared fit and healthy, and she loved participating in sports.
But Turner’s life took a dramatic turn at the start of the school year. In the midst of a softball game, a red, sensitive area on her shin began to throb. Soon both legs were hurting, and the normally active preteen felt sapped of all energy.
Turner’s parents, Louis and Donna Fordham, assumed a quick visit to the pediatrician and a dose of antibiotics could make their daughter feel better.
After all, Turner was rarely ill, and the Fordhams never dreamed she could have anything more serious than a pulled muscle or mild infection.
A quick trip to the doctor’s office, however, indicated that Turner’s pain stemmed from something far more serious than a simple health problem. When tests revealed abnormalities in Turner’s blood cells, the doctor immediately referred her to the region’s only Comprehensive Cancer and Blood Disorders Center at T.C. Thompson Children’s Hospital at Erlanger.
As the Fordhams arrived at Children’s Hospital, they were greeted by the familiar face of Manoo Bhatka, M.D., Medical Director of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology at Children’s Hospital. Only a few years earlier, Dr. Bhatka had treated Turner’s younger brother, Trent, for a mild blood disorder. Though the Fordhams were anxious and worried about their daughter’s health, they also felt a sense of comfort and relief in knowing she would be in the capable hands of Dr. Bhatka—especially when additional tests confirmed that Turner had acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
The most common cancer in children, ALL is a cancer of the white blood cells--the cells that normally fight infections in the body. With low counts of white blood cells, the body has trouble fighting infections. And that means children with ALL have frequent infections and fevers, which usually require hospitalization for observation and treatment.
“Although we could have taken Turner to another city or hospital, we chose to stay at Children’s Hospital for specialized pediatric cancer care,” Mr. Fordham explains.
As an affiliate of the Children’s Oncology Group (COG), Children’s Hospital offers leading edge treatments for children diagnosed with cancer. The COG, supported by the National Cancer Institute, is a combined effort of the Children’s Cancer Study Group, the Pediatric Oncology Group, the Intergroup Rhabdomyosarcoma Study Group and the National Wilm’s Tumor Study Group. These groups work toward speeding up the search for childhood cancer cures. Their vision is to give children, regardless of where they live, access to the latest therapies and expertise of world-renowned specialists in more than 230 cancer centers throughout the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia.
“With our affiliation with the COG, pediatric cancer patients at Children’s Hospital receive the most modern and state-of-the-art therapies. The affiliation also allows us to participate in national research protocols and studies right here in Chattanooga,” Dr. Bhakta explains.
Since Turner’s diagnosis, the young teen has undergone both chemotherapy and radiation treatments at Children’s, and she has endured the agony of losing her hair two times. Though she admits she has “missed a lot at school,” she keeps up with her studies through a homebound program. And Turner says she has also “gotten to do a lot,” especially with the teen peer group at Children’s Hospital, known as Adolescents Together Against Cancer (ATAC).
ATAC helps teens who have or have had cancer build relationships with each other through group outings to such places as the theater, concerts, sporting events, area attractions, and movies. Teens like Turner who are actively involved with ATAC say the program gives them “a chance to be with friends they can relate to—with no fears or concerns about what others think of them.”
Turner and her parents also have found support and understanding from the physicians and staff at Children’s Hospital. “At Children’s, they treat the child first, and the disease second,” says Mr. Fordham. “The staff recognizes and learns what patients like, and they build a relationship on trust. Turner, for instance, is quiet and doesn’t complain a lot. So the nurses have learned how to read her and find out what she really wants and needs.”
Pediatric cancer patients like Turner are treated by a team of pediatric specialists at Children’s Hospital that includes radiologists, surgeons, radiation therapists, nutritionists, psychologists, social workers, and child life specialists who care for the non-medical needs of patients and their families during procedures and treatments.
The pediatric cancer team also shares compassion and concern for each patient. As Turner prepared to receive her first radiation treatment, for example, Jeffrey Gefter, M.D., radiation oncologist, stopped to talk to her family. “He must have read our emotions and known that we were terrified,” recalls Mr. Fordham. “His concern and compassion made us feel that everyone here was taking care of us. And if you didn’t have that, everything would be so much more difficult.”
“We aren’t just doctors who write prescriptions,” adds Dr. Bhakta. “We are here to help families make the right decisions and support them throughout the entire process.”
That support has helped Turner and her family through the fevers and infections that occasionally send her back to Children’s Hospital for treatment from time to time. “All the nurses are great,” Turner says, “and I love the visits from the pet therapy dogs.”
Now in the eighth grade, Turner is looking forward to returning to the softball field and playing golf throughout the year. She is also excited about being named one of the 2007 Miracle Children who serve as ambassadors for T.C. Thompson Children’s Hospital and the Children’s Miracle Network (CMN). “I hope I can help someone else who is living with this disease,” Turner says. “I want to give back some of the support I’ve received.”