“Intermixed Ganglioneuroblastoma”

October 29, 2020

On October 13th, we walked into the ER with no idea that our lives were about to change.

On October 14th, we were told our 6 year old little girl likely had Cancer and she was admitted to the Oncology Unit of Primary Children’s Hospital.

On October 15, we met her Oncology Team and tried to digest what the future may hold.

On October 16, we brought our Savannah home to heal.

On October 18th, we recruited an army of faith. We called friends and family. Neighbors. Co-workers. Teachers. Her medical team and we humbly called upon your faith for our little girl.

‘Family, Friends and Neighbors, we are so grateful and have truly been humbled by the outpouring of love and prayers over the last few days on behalf of our little Savannah and our family. Savannah was admitted to Primary Children’s Hospital for a sever kidney infection on Tuesday. Unfortunately, imaging done for the kidneys also showed a large mass along Savannah’s spine. testing is currently being done to determine what that mass is. Thankfully, Savannah got to come home today where she will complete antibiotics for her kidney infection before surgery can be done the end of this month. We would like to humbly call upon your faith and invite you to join our family in fast and prayer on Sunday the 18th of October for Savannah’s little body to continue to heal and for her team of Doctor’s. We have seen evidence of God’s hand in this. We have felt held and sustained. We have not been left comfortless. We know that Savannah will be blessed and carried and protected with whatever lies ahead. We have a strong testimony of the power of fasting. Thank you for loving us and thank you for your prayers. We love you.” The Riggs Family

The response was nothing short of a miracle. We felt so much love and so much strength. We felt peace. We felt held.

Then, on October 26, we returned to the Children’s Hospital with our little girl to have a tumor measuring 8cm x 4cm x3.5 removed from along her little spine.

On October 28th, we brought this little miracle girl home after her little body surprised us all.

Today, October 29, 2020 at 5:45 pm……. we got the call! Pathology results are back……

Savannah’s tumor, ‘Mr. Bad Boy’, is a Ganglioneuroblastoma with intermixed sub types. What is that? A Ganglioneuroblastoma is a tumor that has both malignant and benign cells that started to grow along a ganglion nerve along her spine. ‘Mr. Bad Boy’ has been there for a long time. Likely, this tumor started growing when our little lady was just 1 or 2 years old. ‘Mr. Bad Boy’ was slow growing at first so he didn’t allow us to see any evidence that he was there. He grew into a monster that was somewhere on the spectrum of a Malignant Neuroblastoma, a cancerous growth the requires chemo or radiation typically found and diagnosed between the ages of 2 or 4. We did not find him when he was mean and full of rage. Instead, he stayed well hidden.

For 2 years now I have been praying for and searching for answers as a mother for my little Savannah’s health. My mom gut has been telling me that something was off. She has struggled with mild headaches, tummy aches, unexplained weight gain, and occasional leg pain. We have seen doctor’s and specialists looking for answers but the labs always looked ok and there were no large warning signs of concern. She was struggling with change. A big move. New house. New school. New friends. Emotional eating. Just normal growing. I knew something was wrong…. but as hard as I tried, I just couldn’t find him either.

Then one day, ‘Mr. Bad Boy’ had to make a choice. He had two pathways he could follow. One would take him down a path that would reek havoc on our little lady. If it chose this path he would get bigger and creep into other areas of her little body. He would become powerful and once discovered, it would require a battle to defeat him. A battle that our little Savannah could loose.

The other pathway would allow ‘Mr. Bad Boy’ to become good. To differentiate!! If he chose this path, then he would begin to change . His growth would slow down. His cells would begin to change from malignant cells to benign ganglioneuroma cells and he would be choosing the path that would save Savannah’s life.

“Mr. Bad Boy’ chose the path that brought us to this point today. He chose the right path. He chose to change and become something that would not hurt our little girl. He chose to retreat.

(In other words, an Intermixed Ganglioneuroblastoma is a tumor that was at one point in it’s growing process a mass of malignant tissue. At some point this mass starts to mature, slow down in growth and begins to differentiate into a Ganglioneuroma of benign cells. Ganglioneuroblastoma’s are often found in children between the ages of 2 and 4. A Ganglioneuroma is typically found in children ages 4 to 8.)

God’s timing is perfect. There is a plan. Let the tumor grow. Let the tumor become. Let the tumor change. Then, let the tumor be found. We can look back over her little life and see the very steps that brought us to the humble moment when “Mr. Bad Boy’ decided it was time to be found. God knew that if this tumor was found when she was 2 or 3 or 4 years old that she would have to fight for her life. It would have required Chemo and Radiation. God knew that her little body had the ability to heal. That ‘Mr. Bad Boy’ needed the time to choose. God never left her. God did not leave her comfortless. God never left us. He just knew the bigger picture. The miracles that line the path of her little life are far past #199. They are too many to count.

It is impossible to look back on the last 17 days of our lives here in the Riggs home and not see God present in every step. A mother’s instinct telling me to come home early. A broken thermometer. Pain in the exact location that screamed appendicitis to her Doctor Daddy. The ER Doctor deciding last minute to order a CT scan rather than an Ultrasound, providing us with the proper imaging to locate the tumor. The in- accurate diagnosis of a kidney abscess that sent us to the Children’s Hospital in the early morning hours. The abscess no longer visible when the Children’s Hospital Radiologist re-read the CT and instead found a large mass. Deciding to do surgery rather than a biopsy. A biopsy only providing a small sample of tissue from one area of the mass that consisted of various types of cell tissue…. some good, some bad. 90% removal in one surgical procedure. Hundreds praying and fasting. A little body that healed so quickly and is home!

So what now? We wait and we watch. Yes, some of the tumor was left in her body because the risk was to high to remove it without damaging something else. Yes, there may still by malignant cells in there, but it is likely that they already have changed or know that they need to differentiate. She will follow up with more scans consistently over the next 2 years to watch for growth. In the mean time, we help her heal. We watch the miracles still unfold as her little body gets ready to feel better than it has in years. Her future is bright and beautiful. Her spirit is strong. Her faith is strong.

It could be said that our little lady is now officially a cancer survivor. She fought off a beast, or perhaps, with a little different perspective…. she endured the discomfort while the beast was given the time to change. ‘Mr. Bad Boy’ is gone and what remains is a small portion of a tumor that has once again taught us and shown just how magnificent, majestic and powerful our human bodies are…..and just how powerful, majestic and magnificent is it’s creator.

God is good! Good is in everything around us. God is a God of miracles!

We believe in the power of prayer and fasting. Thank you for being a part of Savannah’s army. Thank you for your love and faith and prayers as we have traveled down a road the last 17 days that has changed our lives forever.

We love you!

The Riggs Family