Our Story

At two and a half years old, during an otherwise normal afternoon, our daughter Mallory told her grandmother that her belly hurt. Her grandmother felt her abdomen, and there seemed to be something lumpy under her belly button. Expecting typical childhood constipation, we visited the pediatrician. The usual methods of clearing the problem didn’t work, and she was sent for further testing.

To our shock, by the end of the week, our happy, playful toddler was diagnosed with Stage 4 Embryonal Rhabdomyosarcoma, an aggressive cancer that originates from muscle tissue. The original desire was to remove it, but was determined that the best course of action was to reduce it with chemotherapy and remove the remainder. Her treatment plan consisted of multiple surgeries, procedures, twelve rounds of chemotherapy, major surgery, and thirty-three radiation treatments followed by twenty-four more rounds of chemotherapy.

Upon hearing the news of her diagnosis, many of our church members, family, and friends immediately came together and prayed for a miracle. Mallory’s Miracle. Our team of prayer warriors quickly decided they would hold fundraising events to help support our family with the astronomical medical expenses that were flooding in – and they did.

Mallory’s tumor responded very well, and her treatments finished in 2010 with an all-clear. After that, the plan simply consisted of periodic bloodwork and CT scans for the next five years to monitor any changes or abnormalities.

Everything seemed fine. Mallory went four and a half years with clear scans and great reports from her doctors. During that time she was very active in dance, gymnastics, tee-ball, church, and school. She even took a trip to Disney World. Mallory enjoyed being the kid she was meant to be.

We thought the battle was over; we had made it through. It had been years. We were safe.

That’s why we were caught completely off guard when, at seven years old, one of her routine CT scans came back showing a small spot on her lower left lung. Her doctors performed a biopsy, and confirmed the spot to be another type of cancer — Synovial Sarcoma. The oncologist believed this was a result of her previous radiation treatments.

Once again we went into fight mode, and the support from Mallory’s Miracle returned. This time, though, Mallory was old enough to see firsthand what people were doing to help. She knew how much everyone cared. It meant the world to her, and she was truly thankful.

On August 18th, 2015, after numerous attempts to destroy this monster, our Lord decided she had fought long and hard enough. She was nine years old.

In our eyes, Mallory will always be victorious. Until we are reunited, she is safe in the arms of God.

Mallory loved helping others. Our desire is to continue this mission in her honor, with a determined focus on helping families who have a child with a serious illness or disease.

We encourage you to share Mallory’s story with others, and hope you will join us as we continue raising funds for families in need. There are many hurting children and families out there, and they need us – our dollars, our time, our prayers, and our love.

.

Mallory Guthrie

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save