Katie’s long, courageous battle with cancer began during the summer of 2002, as she looked forward to the start of her junior year at Tartan High School in Oakdale, Minn. She began experiencing extreme pain in her right leg. By the time she was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a form of bone cancer, on July 31, 2002, her entire right femur had been taken over by the disease.
During the next 13 months, Katie underwent aggressive chemotherapy treatments, multiple surgeries, including one to replace her femur with a metal bone, and countless hours of physical therapy at the University of Minnesota Children’s Hospital, Fairview. According to Katie's mother, Lynn, Katie’s case was extremely complex, and the University of Minnesota Children’s Hospital was equipped to handle the complexity. Any other options were out of state.
Due to her treatment, Katie would miss her entire junior year. Chemotherapy made her so sick that she was rarely able to see visitors. When she was home and feeling well enough to get out of the house, Katie would go to school just to sit through all of the lunches and visit with friends. “Many of the kids at Tartan only knew her as the girl with cancer,” recalls Lynn. “She would come to school bald, pale, skinny and walking with crutches, but she always had a huge smile on her face and people noticed.”
In Nov, 2002, Katie had surgery to remove her femur and replace it with a metal bone. Getting around was difficult. Even after countless hours of physical therapy, she walked with a severe limp, so it had an impact on daily activities. She would tell close friends that she dreamed of running, just one more time.
After concluding her last round of chemotherapy on Sept. 1, 2003, Katie was determined to attend the first day of her senior year just four days later. “She came to school with IV fluids running, a bandanna on her head and, again, that huge smile on her face,” says Lynn. “ She even had to have one of her nurses come to the school to draw blood for lab work.”
Katie made the most of every minute of her senior year. Despite missing her junior year, Katie, with the help of home-bound tutors, graduated with her class.
After graduation, Katie started working, attended Century College in White Bear Lake, Minn., and enrolled in a fashion school in Chicago for her second year of college. In September 2005, two weeks before she planned to move to Chicago, she learned that her cancer had returned and that her entire leg would need to be amputated.
After having the leg amputation in October 2005, Katie adapted quickly. She also received various treatments including chemotherapy, radiation, and more surgery. Still, her optimistic spirit shined throughout treatment. “At that point, her attitude changed,” recalls Lynn. “If she decided she wanted to do something, it was up to us to figure out how to make it happen …. and we did! Katie took a semester off, but as soon as she was able, she returned to work and college and continued to take classes — knowing, but never admitting, that her cancer would take over before she would be able to graduate.”
Katie refused to let the cancer define how she lived her life. She traveled around the country and even to Paris and Alaska, packing as much life into every day as she could. Although her spirit kept her going as long as it could, Katie lost her courageous battle with cancer on February 22, 2007.
Throughout her battle, Katie always trusted her caregivers at the University of Minnesota Children’s Hospital, Fairview. Lynn recalls everyone treating Katie with a high level of respect and working hard to adjust her treatments around any planned trips or activities. “The doctors truly cared about Katie’s quality of life and balanced her treatments with her desire to avoid hospital stays if possible,” says Lynn. “Katie had limited treatment options, but Dr. Brenda Weigel always had alternatives,” she says. “She always gave Katie hope.”
Katie’s friends and family have worked hard to give hope to other cancer patients. Tartan High School has participated in local cancer fundraisers in her memory. In October 2007, Lynn held the inaugural Date for Life, a celebrity date auction, which raised more than $23,000 for Children’s Cancer Research Fund.
Katie’s battle with cancer has made a lasting impact, teaching everyone who knew her how to face life with courage and optimism. Having gained new perspective, Katie’s family is building a cabin were they can spend quality time with friends and family and appreciate their many blessings. “We no longer take life for granted,” says Lynn. “Katie taught us that when life-changing events occur, only you make the decision as to how they will impact your life. You can choose to let the negative consume you, or you can live your life to its fullest.”
Katie is one of the 20 percent of pediatric cancer patients who cannot be cured. Osteosarcoma currently has only a 66 percent cure rate. Only research will improve those statistics and provide hope for the future. As a result of initial funding from Children’s Cancer Research Fund, Dr. Logan Spector of the University of Minnesota recently received a $1.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to lead the largest and most comprehensive study to date on the causes of pediatric osteosarcoma. By generating a better understanding of the causes of osteosarcoma, this multi-institutional study will help researchers determine more effective treatments to battle and cure the disease.
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