Like a typical 14-year-old, Hailey Lugo uses her Facebook page to upload “selfie” photos, introduce family pets, and declare an outing to a concert by a teen pop sensation to have been the “best night ever.”
But few kids her age have ever made a Facebook post as powerful as the simple five-word status update that Hailey offered on Oct. 5.
“I AM a cancer survivor,” she wrote, followed by a heart sign.
That day, doctors declared Hailey “in remission” from acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a disease that she had been battling since she was first diagnosed in June 2011, when she was 12.
The ordeal taught her a lot, she said, and she shared some advice that makes sense for her, but that may also apply for anyone: “You should always be grateful for everything you have, because it could be worse. Somebody out there has it worse than you. I think you should be happy with everything you have.”
That even extends to homework assignments, something that the Nogales High School freshman said she cherishes.
Her older sister, Ciara, 16, agreed with Hailey’s advice, saying, “We didn’t really get along before she got sick. Then we kind of got closer, and now we do get along.”
Hailey added: “When you realize you could lose somebody at any second, you really should enjoy the time you have with them.”
Hailey’s active life has returned with a rush, including several big moments since her survivor status was confirmed. A member of the NHS marching band, she and her band mates performed at the University of Arizona Band Day on Oct. 26, where they received a mark of “excellent.” That qualified them for the state band festival on Nov. 2.
During fall break in mid-October, she traveled to New Orleans with the Sunshine Kids Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to children with cancer. While on the sightseeing trip, the group met actor Ryan Reynolds – with whom Hailey posed for a photo. “We were with him for two hours and he was so nice,” she said.
Early on while suffering from the disease, Hailey was chosen as the poster girl and honorary patient in 2011 for the Tucson Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Light the Night event. However, she ended up missing it because she and her family received a “Make a Wish” Foundation trip to Paris for a week.
Hailey’s medical treatment concluded the same day as this year’s “Light the Night” event – Oct. 5. She was featured on KVOA Channel 4 in Tucson for the accomplishment, she said, and there’s a link on her Facebook page to view the segment.
Hailey said she’s happy not to be taking any more medicine, and that she “doesn’t have to miss school.” The care was great at Diamond Children’s at the University of Arizona Medical Center, but it’s not where a 14-year-old feels comfortable.
Back in June 2011, “I was so pale I looked dead, like a ghost, and my mom took me to the doctor and they checked my hemoglobin,” she said. It was extremely low, and led to her diagnosis of acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a cancer of the white blood cells.
Her final intravenous or IV chemotherapy was Sept. 17 and her last spinal tap chemo was on Sept. 18. The only medicine she takes now is the antibiotic Bactrim to prevent pneumonia. Even so, the port in her chest for medicine remains in place for about six months. “During the six months after you finish chemo, is the time you’re most likely to have a relapse,” she said.
Throughout the treatment, she endured more than 300 injections of chemotherapy in her legs and 20 spinal taps, her mother Lorena said. She had blood transfusions early in the process.
The radiation was terrible. “I dreaded going to that so much that when I would look at that I would throw up,” Hailey said. “I didn’t want to feel horrible; it has so many bad memories, it makes you really nervous. It gets you really nauseous.”
Lorena explained that the radiation treatment was different than it might be for other forms of cancer. “The radiation was directed to her spinal fluid so it had to be directed straight to her brain through the front of her face. There was a lot of noises and twisting around in the tube. They had a mesh mask which they had to bolt down.”
Asked how she kept on an even keel, Hailey replied, “Sometimes I didn’t. Sometimes you just have to let it out and cry. Sometimes you just have to go outside and scream at the world. But mostly I just kept a positive attitude.”
The family also had to deal with the death of Lorena’s father from mesothelioma cancer. His diagnosis came about five months after Hailey’s.
“That was really hard for me,” Hailey said. “He was always there for me. He was like my good luck charm.” They accompanied each other to the other’s chemotherapy sessions. He died in March 2012, Lorena said.
Faithful support
Hailey plays clarinet in the NHS band and guitar in the school’s Mariachi Apache. Music is a large part of the Lugos’ life. Lorena teaches band at Desert Shadows Middle School and Ciara plays flute in the NHS band. Their brother, Sam, 11, is in the DSMS band.
Hailey’s father, Robert, is a computer network teacher at NHS.
Her friends and family created a Facebook page titled “We’re all praying for you, Hailey Lugo. You can fight this leukemia!” to provide updates and support during her ordeal, and Hailey’s Catholic faith provided support as well. Her family attends Most Holy Nativity Catholic Church in Rio Rico and also has attended Sacred Heart Church in Nogales. Two nuns, Sister Guadalupe and Sister Carolina, have been close friends to her, visiting her in the hospital.
Hailey has given much thought to the experience and has developed a philosophy about it: “God doesn’t give you anything you can’t handle. I think God chose the right person to take this on. He chooses his strongest warriors for the hardest battles. I think he chose me for a reason.
“I honestly think I wouldn’t trade anything in the world for what I’ve learned from cancer,” she said.
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