LJKorenko
Lisa





Me and hubby Jared

Hi my name is Lisa and I have been married to my husband Jared for 3 years. We live on the Central Coast of California. I have three children, Travis age 10, Kelsey age 7, and Justina age 3.



Travis is my little hockey boy. He's a rough and tumble boy but, has a sensitive heart and has no problem sitting on mommy's lap for some love. Kelsey is my little independent inquiring mind girl. She's smart, and quick to be able to read through the lines. They have both been understanding and relatively patient with the ups and downs of their younger sister's rollercoaster ride of cancer. Justina is my youngest and a truely courageous determined young soul. When the going gets rough she just keeps going.



In November of 1996 Justina went from a happy and active 19 month old to a child that couldn't talk, sit, walk or even stand. All she could do is shake, scream and vomit. Nobody could figure out what was wrong with her. A brain MRI ruled out a brain tumo so it was guessed that she had a viral infection that went to her brain. After a month in the hospital we took a different child home. She no longer smiled, was fed through a g-tube in her stomach and required daily physical therapy to regain some motor function. The doctors were sure that in a matter of weeks that she would begin to get better. After 4 and 1/2 months she didn't get better. I was told that I needed to be patient. I lost my patience and confidence with her neurologist so we headed of to Childrens Hospital in Los Angeles. Expecting to be there for the day I only brought my purse. Little did I know that I would spend the next 5 months in Los Angeles. We were in the doctor's office less than 20 minutes when we got the news that the radiologists detected a mass on the films we brought from the original hospital. To our disbelief and also relief we learned that our little had neuroblastoma. What she also had is a syndrome called opsoclonus-myoclonus syndrome. Her immune system activated when her boy recognized that there was a tumor, it attacked the tumor but, in the process also attacked her brain. Why it does this nobody knows but, it explained her complete loss of motor skills.





These diagnosises began the long road of ups and downs. Thus far, she has had surgery, chemotherapy, plasmapheresis and extensive use of immune suppression. Justina is now cancer free but, despite this glorious news, her immune system continues to be on haywire. For some reason her immune system still thinks it needs to attack the brain. She requires cyclosporine, prednisone and ivig to keep her immune system in line. Without this treatment Justina returns to having no motor skills. It's been a rough road and the future is still uncertain. BUT, we hold tight to the moment and we relish in what she can do today. Her sheer determination and happy go lucky attitude can't help but be contagious.



We have been fortunate in that our experience has kept our marriage strong. My husband and I get stressed but, we have grown a new appreciation for each other and also for the parents that we are today. We can still sweat the small things, but we also cherish the small things. Before this our life was a matter of going to work, paying the bills & getting the kids to school. We are now more in tune with the appreciation of the quality of life that we live.