KNOXVILLE (WATE) – An amazing young lady from Greeneville had a headache and stomach pain that just wouldn’t go away. It turns out she had leukemia.
Madeline Keeney, 11 and a half, has gotten to know the staff at Children’s Hospital. She makes frequent trips there for leukemia treatment.
Madeline was diagnosed in March after her parents noticed she seemed pale and tired at the Daddy/Daughter Dance, and that wasn’t like her at all.
“I’ve just always kind of been a lively, happy kid, I guess. I always kind of like play and work hard – work hard, play harder basically,” said Madeline with a giggle.
“She’s doing great, mostly in part because of her attitude. She’s just a very strong willed child and always stays positive. She’s been through a whole lot,” said Pediatric Oncology Nurse Practitioner Amanda Martin.
Madeline must complete two and a half years of treatment, including chemotherapy, but serious setbacks have pushed that timeline out a bit.
“They thought she had a stroke. She was unresponsive. My husband was talking to her and then she started nodding off and then the nurse came in and she was unconscious,” said Madeline’s mother Prescilla.
The emotional side of treatment was a challenge all its own. Ironically, Madeline had just cut her long hair, donating it to Locks of Love, before she knew she had leukemia and she started losing her hair.
“When I first donated my hair, I felt good because I had done something nice, and I didn’t care what other people thought. I kind of did it up with spikes, kind of like a Mohawk where it wouldn’t be straight, just kind of be everywhere. And now when I lost my hair, I guess that prepared me for people thinking that she’s got cancer and she’s bald. I’ve even been mistaken sometimes for a boy,” said Madeline.
“For it to come out like in a movie in big old clumps, it was like (gasps) – I was expecting it to dwindle out, not come out in patches. And when it did and we’d take her in public, people would actually sidestep her and she’s like, ‘Okay,’ ” said Prescilla Keeney.
Madeline takes everything in stride. She’s a smart young lady and knows a lot about her illness and the importance of research in the hopes of finding a cure.
“It’s kind of a sickness if I caught a decade or so ago, I might not have made it this far. But now due to research money, they’ve gotten further and it’s helping us to get to survive better,” she said.
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. If you see yellow ribbons around town, those signify childhood cancer and a reminder to please support cancer research for children. An easy way to do that is to donate to Children’s Hospital.