Planning a funeral for a child is the worst emotional experiences that parents will never expect to endure. Such was the situation that the parents of Abby Furco, an angelical 10-year old stricken with cancer, recently had to face.
In 2011, Abby was diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia. The prognosis issued by her doctors at the time was grim; she was only expected to live a few months as her overall chance of survival dropped to 20 percent. Abby’s parents prayed for the best as she underwent chemotherapy and other treatments that result in very unpleasant effects such as hair loss and extreme weakness. The little girl’s immune system debilitated to the point of not being able to fight infections, and thus every day turned into uncertainty for her family.
In late 2013, Abby’s cancer showed positive signs of remission. She became as healthy as could be hoped under her dire circumstances; she not only returned to school but also joined the Girl Scouts and started playing soccer. Normalcy returned to the Furco household for nearly a year; alas, her condition suddenly turned for the worse and she required two bone marrow transplants.
By the time Abby was just eight years old, she was being treated with dialysis due to her failing kidneys. The second bone marrow transplant did not help Abby; in fact, it started to attack her immune system. Abby was disconnected from the dialysis machine and was placed in a hospice. Her situation became so hopeless that her grandparents traveled from out of town to say goodbye. Her parents believed that the dreaded time to plan for their daughter’s funeral had arrived, and thus they selected a casket and evaluated songs to play at her wake.
After she spent a few days in an unresponsive state, Abby suddenly woke up and told her surprised parents that her time had not come and that she still had a long life ahead of her. It only took a few days for her to start walking around in the hospice facility, and thus she returned home. She did not seem to need the treatments that had been discontinued when her health was deemed terminal; she started recovering on her own. In the past, Abby could not even come down with a cold without her parents becoming terrified; that situation has improved considerably and she is only getting steroidal IV therapy these days.
Abby’s oncologist is extremely surprised to see her miraculous recovery, which no one expected. No prognosis can be given at this time since her remission has been atypical to say the least.
Ever since Abby defied certain death, her parents can only look forward towards the future. They will never forget the words that their daughter spoke on her deathbed, and they will take things one day at a time.