FRIENDS, CLASSMATES IMPORTANT IN GIRL'S BATTLE WITH LEUKEMIA
By HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH
The Capital-Journal
Pokes are the worst part of leukemia, 7-year-old Rachel Sowers said Thursday.
The second-grader had attended the first day at Assumption School this fall before a mysterious temperature refused to drop and kept her homebound. Her pediatrician first prescribed antibiotics, then later performed a routine blood test and discovered what appeared to be leukemia. He immediately sent the family to Children's Mercy in Kansas City, Mo.
So far, insurance is paying for Rachel's medical expenses, but the illness has racked up incidental costs. Classmates from Assumption have leapt to the family's aid.
Her eighth-grade sister and a seventh-grade friend have made more than 200 black and green leukemia ribbons, which were given to the second-, seventh- and eighth-grade classes. The remainder will be distributed at a hamburger fry from 3 to 6 p.m. today in the school parking lot, S.W. 8th and Jackson. Proceeds will be given to the Sowers family.
Also, a former classmate approached Assumption principal Sister Corita Conlan about a "jar for Rachel," similar to the one the school kept in the office to raise money for Kosovo refugees. Conlan found a jar, and students and staff already have donated about $300 to the Sowers family.
Rachel's mother, Diana Sowers, who works at the Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library, and her father, Bill Sowers, who works at the Kansas State Library, have taken turns at Rachel's bedside and spending time with the other children -- Emily, 13; Amanda, 16; and Kenny, 18.
Since the diagnosis, Rachel only has left Children's Mercy for four trips home -- the shortest only was four hours. She must return when her temperature reaches 101.5 degrees. Rachel's shoulder-length blond hair has fallen out in clumps from chemotherapy treatments, and she may undergo a bone marrow transplant in December.
Amanda is the closest bone marrow match so far. The results from Kenny haven't returned, but Rachel remains convinced that he will be the donor -- a way to get back at him for teasing his little sister.
"The staff tried to arrange for Kenny to be tested in her room so she could watch," Bill Sowers said. "But her immune system was so low they couldn't."
Despite the illness, Rachel remains upbeat and teases her family. Nurses let her use her favorite Teddy Bear for a pillow. The shots became less frequent after a Hickman line was inserted in her chest to funnel medicine to different parts of her body. Rachel has learned to give herself the once-daily Neupogen shot that remains. Neupogen stimulates the growth of cells in blood and the immune system.
"Now, I don't have to do that many pokes because of the Hickman line," Rachel said, as she sat in the family living room.
Co-workers, church friends and individuals the family has met through a genealogy Internet site have sent cards, hats, stuffed animals and meals. Bill Sowers said the outpouring of support has been overwhelming, yet the experience remains the most unexpected and horrible thing he could imagine.
"It's like I'm in a very painful dream and most of the time I keep wanting to wake up but I don't," Bill Sowers said.
"I don't think it's a dream," Rachel said. "It hurts to much to be a dream."