AMKL: Oliver’s Journey

On January 21, we took Oliver to the pediatrician after noticing some symptoms that concerned us (neck stiffness, limp, fevers). Over the course of a few days we went from getting a knee x-ray to being admitted to the hospital and then transported by ambulance to the UNC oncology/hematology floor. Oliver went through scans, blood work, genetic testing, sedation for multiple procedures over the course of our week at UNC and still we had no official diagnosis or clear treatment plan. After some genetic testing was sent to the MAYO clinic, we were told that Oliver has a very rare and aggressive type of Leukemia called AMKL (acute megakaryoblastic leukemia). Our team told us that this type of cancer is very rare and very hard to treat. Our lives were totally turned upside down over the course of a week and we are still trying to grapple with this reality and how to move forward. Thank you for your love and concern for our family. Please use this website to get updates and to guide you in how you can pray for our family.