Cumming child fights cancer with 'Beads of Courage'

Lukas Martin of Cumming will turn 2 in December and he already has three prize possessions - three beaded necklaces he made himself.

Each necklace has about 60 beads, but they aren't just any beads found at a craft shop or a jewelry store. Each bead tells a story about a personal journey of overcoming challenge, perseverance, but most of all, courage.

So far Lukas has earned 180 beads as part of a program at the Aflac Cancer Center and Blood Disorders Service of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta called "Beads of Courage."

In March, Lukas was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia, a disease the American Cancer Society Web site describes as an aggressive form of leukemia that starts in the bone marrow and quickly spreads to the blood. It is extremely rare for a child to be diagnosed with the disease. In fact, it is a disease rarely diagnosed in patients younger than 40.

After visits to different health care facilities for an unexplained fever, Lukas' parents, Dexter McBrayer and Ashley Martin, took him to the Northeast Georgia Medical Center where a blood test indicated an exceptionally high white blood count. Shortly after that McBrayer and Martin received the bad news. Martin said they were devastated.

"You never really expect it," she said. "We never would have thought that that's what they were going to come back and tell us."

Lukas went through five months of chemotherapy, and in July, he received a core blood transplant.

According to Martin, Lukas is doing better now with no sign of cancer, but he continues to go for blood tests once a week.

Lukas is one of many children undergoing treatment for cancer or other conditions and participating in the Beads of Courage program. Each bead represents a milestone reached during a patient's course of treatment.

Martin said Lukas has received beads for treatments such as chemotherapy and for undergoing procedures and blood tests. Ultimately, the strings of beads will be a keepsake symbolizing his journey and courage as he endured treatment for the disease.

Nancy Campbell, a registered nurse and certified pediatric oncology nurse said Jean Baruch, a registered nurse, founded the program as she was researching coping mechanisms while earning her doctorate.

Campbell said about 1,000 children are currently participating in the program at the center. She said it helps them cope better because they can see the beads and know they actually made it through a difficult time such as surgery or treatment.

"It is so worthwhile and means so much to the kids that this program is going to go all over the nation," said Campbell.

She said programs are already established in about 50 medical facilities throughout the nation. The program was introduced at the Aflac Center at Egleston in September, and Scottish Rite began the program in early October.

Under the age of 2, it's difficult for Lukas to verbalize what the beads mean to him, but as he gets older, the necklaces will not only be a reminder of the courage he had to fight the disease but an inspiration to others as well.

For more information about the "Beads of Courage" program, visit the Web site at www.beadsofcourage.net.
- www.northfulton.com

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