8 Miles for Hannah

I had a terrible, tiring, aweful 8 mile run today. After going to bed at 1.30 am after my son got home from "Harry Potter Night" I embarked on 8 miles. I suffered the entire way. But I have no problems, and most likely, neither do you if you compare your troubles to the courage and spirit of Hannah McNeal. I learned about Hannah from my good friend Sharyn Collinson who introduced me to her mom, Heidi. Heidi was gracious enough to send me several pictures of Hannah, before and during her treatment for Leukemia. I thought of Hannah this morning as I silently complained about my run. Then I stopped complaining.

Thankfully, Hannah is in remission, but the journey has not been easy. But Hannah is truly an inspiration.

I am going to use this blog to share her story along with the pictures from Heidi.

I am reminded why I am doing this 2nd Marathon. I am raising money for girls, boys, men and women all over the country who suffer from Leukemia and Lymphoma.

Please consider donating to the cause at:

www.active.com/donate/tntnca04/tntncaDCole

Your donation goes directly to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to help those like Hannah fight and beat dreadful diseases.

We start with Heidi's description of Hannah's diagnosis:



"Up to this point in her life, Hannah had been a healthy child and for the most part had only visited the doctors for her "well" visits... (read story)

But on 10/25/05, we took her to the dr after we noticed that she had been bruising more than we thought was normal for her. At the drs they found blood in her urine & an enlarged spleen and liver. The dr sent us directly to the hospital where she was admitted.


Within minutes of the dr looking at her, he told us that he needed to run more tests, but was almost positive she had leukemia (cancer of the white blood cells (WBC). It was a completely surreal moment - especially when the response we were expecting was that she had a minor problem but that she was fine.

The ensuing days were spent trying to come to terms with the situation plus dealing with more bad news. On 10/26 we received a "good news/bad news" story. The story was Hannah didn't require the bone marrow test, but the reason was they found the answer from her blood test and knew from her high counts that her marrow was filled with the cancer cells. Her WBC count was 300,000 (normal range is 4,000-11,000). That night she received a "central line" (a catheter) in her chest, where she would receive the majority of her chemo treatment and for blood tests.

She had a very difficult time coming out of anesthesia from her surgery and maintaining proper oxygen levels on her own - it was a very scary thing to witness. On 10/27 they typed her with an aggressive form, Acute T Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Once diagnosed, they began chemo treatment immediately and she also had her first spinal tap..."


You can read this excerpt and find other informatinon at Hannah's website:

http://www.caringbridge.org/cb/inputSiteName.do?method=search&siteName=hannahgracemcneal

Please donate to help beat Leukemia and Lymphoma!

Total 2007 Training Weeks: 9

Total 2007 Training Miles: 104

Total Miles since beginning training in May, 2006: 835