My sister, Joyce Pugh Grey, shared the video I posted and write this. I wish I had a way with writing things like she does. Its kinda long, but worth every word...especially if you knew Paige personally. Thank you again, shishy. I love you. I miss my niece, Paige Nicole Haney, every day that I breathe. I miss her voice, her smile, her laughter, her beauty. She was courageous, funny and inspiring. She battled cancer for many years from the age of 3 to 16. Though she may have been in remission between treatments from three different cancers, that ugly disease lived in her body, just waiting to show its ugly head again. She endured many surgeries throughout her childhood because of cancer. She chose to live without complaining of her sickness, but instead fighting it. That is not to say she did not have rough days, but it was rare to see her without a smile on her face or laughing at herself when she was acting silly. She enjoyed her niece and nephew who were dear to her heart, and she loved them with everything she had. She had patience with them, even as babies. She loved the camera and taking selfies, but did not enjoy having others photograph her. I love looking at the many selfies she took, though those photographs often make me cry. She was a child, taken too soon, a young lady who never got to experience what many of us do. She never got to go to prom, and every year that my daughters went, I always thought of her, wishing she would have been able to experience it. She never got to experience marriage or having children, and I know she would have been a wonderful mother, just like her own mother. She loved life, and battled bravely to live it. I often wonder what she would be doing today, had she not been dealt the life she had. What if cancer had not been part of her life, would she in college; would she be married and have children; would she be chasing her dream in another state...sadly, we will never know. She spent many days, weeks, and even months in the hospital. There she made friends with other children battling cancer, with parents of those children, the nurses and doctors who cared for her. At the age of 3, she was diagnosed with Rhabdomyosarcoma, her first cancer. Her first doctor wanted to amputate her leg. Wanting a second opinion, my sister was referred to Cleveland Clinic to another doctor. It was his belief he could save her leg. And that he did. After many cancer treatments, she was in remission. At the age of 10, she was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, in the very same leg of the original cancer. With that diagnosis, they removed her femur and she had a cadaver donor femur placed in her leg. She endured several surgeries following that surgery. After treatment for that cancer, she was finally in remission again. Her hair came back as beautiful as ever. She was feeling better. We were all certain that was the end of that ugly disease. However, at the age of 15, she was diagnosed with leukemia and given weeks to live without a bone marrow transplant. Paige was unaware of this timeframe, but she knew the cancer was back and was very serious. Her doctor, who had been with her from the very beginning when she was 3, spoke to her and my sister, telling Paige she had the choice at her age to decide whether to fight. He told her no matter her choice, he would be there to fight it with her. Paige said she wanted to fight. And her final battle began. She had a bone marrow transplant and spent months in the hospital. She came home from the hospital, and though she was 100% donor at some point, she never really felt well, if I am remembering correctly. On June 21, 2008, she began having nose bleeds that were almost uncontrollable. She was complaining of stomach cramps through the night. My sister called Cleveland Clinic and was advised to bring her in the morning. Surely, it was as simple as giving her blood, so we all thought. [Over the years, Paige had many occasions were she needed blood, etc., and she felt better afterwards.] We were sure that was the problem that day. The next morning, my sister tried to take her to Cleveland Clinic. Paige wanted to stay in bed, but my sister was able to get her up. She was so weak. Tina had to almost carry her to the car. She was scared and worried about driving all the way to Cleveland. Instead she took her to East Liverpool City Hospital. From there, she was to be taken to Cleveland by Lifeflight. Because of coming storms, she was taken by ambulance. Before the evening was over, Paige was on life support, and my sister was told she was in liver failure and would not survive. Paige passed away on June 23, 2008. I will never, ever forget that moment when they removed her life support. My sister, through many tears, told her it was okay to go. At that moment, tears rolled down from Paiges eyes and then she was gone. Her heart stopped. After her death, my sister learned from the autopsy that the leukemia had returned. This was the cause of her death, as it had spread rapidly. This, my friends, is childhood cancer. Too many children die every year from childhood cancer. Instead of all the crazy things our government is spending money on, why isnt more money going into research for cancer? Why are so many children afflicted with cancer every year, some dying and others continuing to battle over the years. I just dont get it. September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. I would love to see something on Facebook to raise money for his cause, so that parents all over this world can rest easy knowing there is a cure for this ugly disease. Rest in peace, Paige Haney. I love you always.
Posted on: Fri, 29 Aug 2014 02:19:38 +0000