Four-year-old Nicole Burton, of Oxford, may not realize it now, but she’s a hero in many people’s eyes.
Everyday she’s winning the battle against cancer and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society is recognizing this wonderful achievement by making her the Honored Hero at this year’s Leukemia Cup Regatta to be held May 15-16 at the Great Lakes Yacht Club in St. Clair Shores.
‘It just shows how well she’s dealt with it,? said Nicole’s mother, Shelly. ‘She’s been absolutely phenomenal. I think she’s what makes my husband and I take it so well.?
The Leukemia Cup Regatta is a series of sailing events that combine boating with raising money to fight leukemia, lymphoma and other blood cancers.
Based in White Plains, New York, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (www.LLS.org) is the world’s largest voluntary health organization dedicated to funding blood cancer research and providing education and patient services.
On Sept. 11, 2008, Nicole was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL), a fast-growing cancer of the white blood cells that appears most often in children under age 10.
Prior to her diagnosis, the only symptoms Nicole exhibited was some sporadic vomiting for almost two weeks.
‘She just started throwing up here and there,? Shelly said. ‘There was no pattern or reason or food change.?
At first, it was chalked up to separation anxiety.
Shelly had just started to attend Oakland University to study social work and Nicole was attending pre-kindergarten classes on campus.
But after the pediatrician discovered, during a physical exam, Nicole’s liver was enlarged and she woke up one night ‘screaming? about how much her head hurt, it was off to Children’s Hospital of Michigan in Detroit.
A bone marrow biopsy revealed it was leukemia, but fortunately the overall survival rate for children with ALL is nearly 80 percent.
‘We did catch it very early,? Shelly noted. ‘We caught it before it got into her bloodstream.?
Shelly’s thankful that Dr. Sunil Das, who practices at Orion Pediatrics, suspected it was leukemia and sent them to Children’s Hospital rather than wait.
‘He deserves a lot of credit for not letting this go untreated,? she said.
Nicole was immediately admitted to Children’s Hospital and began a series of platelet transfusions, blood transfusions, chemotherapy and a round of steroids.
After about a month this, Nicole went into remission and she’s now in the final, less intense phase of her treatment.
For the next two years, she’ll undergo what’s called ‘maintenance therapy,? which consists of more chemotherapy and steroids.
Through it all, Shelly’s been amazed with how well her daughter, who turns 5 in June, has dealt with her cancer.
‘She handled it better than we did,? Shelly said. ‘She enjoys going down to Children’s Hospital. She knows everybody down there. It’s more of a fun atmosphere for her. She rolls with it.?
Nicole has no problem telling folks she has ‘sick blood,? but she’s getting better because of the medicine the doctors put in her ‘button? ? the port in her chest through which she receives chemotherapy treatments.
As for Shelly, a 1989 Lake Orion High School graduate, and her husband, Jim, they’ve relied heavily on God to get them through.
‘We put everything in our faith,? she said. ‘God gave us a sick child because he knew we would take care of her and that we could.?
Nicole’s leukemia coupled with all the economic hardships the family’s faced has only served to make the Burtons stronger.
‘You don’t know how strong you are until strong is all you have,? Shelly said.
This fall Nicole is supposed to start kindergarten at Leonard Elementary, but Shelly’s hoping her daughter will be able to attend Lakeville Elementary considering they live in the Lake Villa Manufactured Home Community, which is virtually next door to the school.
‘It’s closer and she has cousins that go there,? Shelly said. ‘It would take a lot of the worry away.?
Shelly is still planning to go back to school, but now she’s planning to study nursing.
‘Between my juvenile diabetes, Nicole’s leukemia and my mom’s heart disease, I’ve got half of nursing school done,? she said.
To register for The Leukemia Cup Regatta or receive information about the upcoming events, visit www.leukemiacup.org/mi or call (248) 581-3984.