By Kristen Higdon, Contributing Writer, editor@heraldguide.com
On July 18, there will be a blood drive to benefit Sara Edler of Luling, who was recently diagnosed with pre B-cell leukemia.
Sara’s mother, Stephanie Edler, remembers when she first started to see the troubling signs of her daughter’s condition.
“From the end of April until her last day of school, she had four headaches that were so painful they woke her up from a dead sleep,” Stephanie said.
The headaches were so agonizing that Stephanie would find her daughter screaming and crying. Initially, Stephanie thought it was migraines or severe sinus issues. The family even consulted Sara’s pediatrician who originally thought it was anemia due to her pale face and dark circles under her eyes.
When the last day of school arrived for Mimosa Park Elementary, Sara was eager to attend the end-of-year festivities.
Even though she was hesitant about letting her go, Stephanie agreed.
She ended up having to pick Sara up early from school. “I picked her up, and we went straight to the hospital,” Stephanie said.
The doctors ran tests and did blood work.
“I got the call that evening saying that they contacted a hematologist at Children’s Hospital who said to get to the hospital right away,” Stephanie remembered. “When we got there, they said they were 90-99 percent sure it was leukemia.”
After she heard the shocking words, Stephanie said the doctor continued talking, but she didn’t hear anything that came after the word “leukemia.”
“I blanked out, and my heart dropped to my stomach,” she recalled.
Luckily, after the bone marrow biopsy, the family learned Sara had pre B-cell leukemia, specifically acute lymphoblastic leukemia, which is the most easily treatable and curable form of the disease.
Sara recently finished her last day of her first 28-day treatment, and she recently entered the next phase in the recovery process.
The family spent three weeks at Children’s Hospital, and Stephanie is very complimentary of the care they are receiving there. “All of us absolutely love it there. They are making the situation bearable.”
Breaking news to Sara, as well as their older 9-year-old daughter, Amber, was not easy, but Stephanie said they waited until they knew everything before explaining.
“Once I was able to say that it’s the most treatable, it thankfully alleviated the tough question,” she said.Sara is handling the news wonderfully considering the circumstances.
She is still able to be active as much as her stamina allows, but she does get tired easily as the medicine she is taking can often cause bone and joint pain.
As far as the toll this has taken on the Edlers, Stephanie said the help of family and friends has been invaluable.From giving blood and working on different fundraising efforts, such as the upcoming blood drive, the family has witnessed great support from friends within the community.
“Our friends and family members have been great at helping with our older daughter Amber,” Stephanie said. “I have been at the hospital while my husband is working, and they have helped with watching her and getting her to and from places when needed.”
The blood drive is a community effort to help Sara.
It will take place on Saturday, July 18, at Holy Family Catholic Church on Lakewood Drive in Luling from 8:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Please sign up by July 15 by contacting Vicki Bergeron at sweetserenity1998@yahoo.com.
Papa John’s Pizza in Boutte also is doing a fundraiser July 22 for Sara. Anyone who turns in their pizza receipt to them that day will donate 20 percent of that sale to help the family.
They will have a drop box in the store or if their pizza is delivered they can sign the receipt and give it to the delivery person.
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