Post Messenger Recorder -

Meagan and Gabe Farrell wanted to raise their children in the country on a farm and in 2019, Meagan retired from her job with Healthy Edgerton to make their vision come true.

The couple and their two daughters, Olivia and Masey, moved to the home dairy farm where Meagan grew up on Highway W outside of Belleville. Meagan's parents, Trish and Bert Paris, moved to their new home on the back side of the farm.

Life was good. They settled into a routine of milking the cows, Gabe going to his job off the farm with Dave Jones, Inc., celebrating the birth of their son, Colton, and enjoying family visits near and far.

Cancer Diagnosis

This summer, with the unrelenting twists and turns of COVID-19, Meagan noticed that their three-year-old Masey wasn't her usual self.

"Masey had unexplained fevers, she was lethargic and just more tired than usual," said Meagan. "When we took her to our primary doctor, she thought it was a stomach bug and that we should monitor."

When her symptoms didn't improve and when she was winded walking up the stairs, Meagan made another appointment with her primary for October 13.

"A chest x-ray showed a large mass on Masey's right lung," explained Meagan. "Our doctor immediately sent us to American Family Children's Hospital in Madison."

A computer tomography scan showed a large tumor on Masey's right lung, along with masses in her pelvis, ribs, and spine. Biopsies were taken of the mass and bone marrow.

"Pathology results revealed that it could be two types of cancers, including Rhabdomyosarcoma (fairly common) or Pleuropulmonary Blastoma or PPB," said Meagan. "The doctors strongly believed that it was PPB but Masey's biopsies were sent to the University of Minnesota for confirmation."

A week later, a chemotherapy plan was started.

"We must stop it from spreading NOW!" wrote Meagan in her Caring Bridge journal.

Given the severity of Masey's condition, she stayed in the hospital for the first three weeks of her treatment.

"Masey was in the intensive care unit so she received one-on-one nursing care. Her heart is displaced and there are no breath sounds occurring on the right side of her chest," added Meagan as she asked friends and family for caring thoughts for strength and appreciation for grandparents who were "tending to the farm, dealing with virtual school and keeping our other two kids alive, safe, and having fun."

The treatment roadmap for PPB has 12 cycles of chemotherapy, each are three weeks long. The roadmap is laid out for 36 weeks, but plans may change after the first four cycles, which are the most intense of the treatment.

"Our doctors had only seen one case of PPB, and it was a while ago," recalled Meagan. "The doctors consulted with the doctor who started the PPB registry at the University of Minnesota and before starting this treatment, our doctors had to have it approved by the hospital's board of directors."

Gabe and Meagan agreed to have Masey be part of the PPB registry so the things discovered during her treatment can help families who are going through a similar diagnosis.

A few days later, Masey was moved to the regular pediatric oncology unit.

"Her body was responding to the medicine so much better than the doctors anticipated," said Meagan. "I believe it's because of the outpouring of love, support, and her angels."

While at the hospital, Gabe and Meagan learned how to clean, flush, and sanitize the central line that is in Masey's chest where medications are administered.

They also learned about some of the limitations that Masey will unfortunately be facing.

"It was really hard for me to hear a lot of these, because a lot of them will be really hard at the farm," said Meagan. "Masey will be immunocompromised and has some time where it's dangerous for her to be around certain things. Her immune system is exposed to the elements and an infection of any kind can be serious."

Meagan explained that Masey can't be in the barn, she can't be around hay, it's up in the air as to whether or not she can take her on the four-wheeler that's covered in poop because it's a farm four-wheeler and that's what we do, we ride the four-wheeler to the pasture to bring the cows in. Can she be in the pasture with me while I'm pushing the cows up? The nice pasture that's full of grass, but also fresh cow pies. Can she be in the tractor with grandpa? Because she LOVES doing that, she loves it. Can she climb in the rock pile that is literally the kids' favorite pastime? She can't nuzzle her kitties, she can't nuzzle into Merle, she can't be around the hay bales especially, and she can't be out by the calves.

"It's a lot of things she can't be around that literally have been her life for the last year," said Meagan. "That was really hard to hear so we're working on brainstorming other things that we can do that can still not take away her identify and her claim to that quality of life."

The same day the family got confirmation from the pathologist that Masey's diagnosis is Pleuropulmonary Blastoma, which has less than 500 cases worldwide, ever.

"Masey is, as we knew, a rare individual who has unfortunately grown a rare cancer in her body," added Meagan in her journal. "So ya, it's time for us to get it out of there!"

Meagan explained that when Masey was admitted to the hospital she was taking in a nutritional intravenous mixture called TPN. Every day, a nutritionist makes the TPN mixture to match Masey's nutritional needs by reviewing her labs and adjusting as needed.

Gabe and Meagan enjoy family time with Masey, Olivia and Colton before the holidays.

Another way to supplement her nutrition is through a nasogastric intubation, a tube that is inserted through the nose and goes down to the stomach. The doctors wanted to make sure Masey could handle the feeding tube before she could go home.

Meagan also explained that Masey's body is fighting some "crazy stuff."

"I keep reminding myself that I have to talk to her about why some of these treatments are happening," said Meagan. "It's easy to think, 'she's three, she won't understand,' but truthfully 'she's three, and absolutely understands, and is scared!'"

On October 31st, Masey was cleared for discharge. She was off oxygen completely at night, her fever was cleared, and her heart rates were high but under control.

Part two of this article may be seen here: https://www.postmessengerrecorder.com/story/2021/01/07/community/we-can-do-hard-things-part-two/10438.html