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Molly was a 15 year old high school freshman when she was diagnosed with a rare sub-type (hypodiploidy) of ALL (acute lymphoblastic leukemia) in February of 2014. She started a 2 and ½ year course of chemotherapy. After 28 days, her cancer was in “remission” and she had a MRD (minimum residual disease) of ZERO. Researchers are finding that risk of relapse is generally proportional to the level of MRD. This was good news for Molly, but because she had hypodiploid ALL, we had to make an agonizing decision of whether she should undergo a bone marrow transplant (indicated with HALL) or continue aggressive chemotherapy only (because of her MRD=0). After consulting many sources, it was decided she would continue with chemo.
So, Molly spent a lot of her high school career undergoing chemo, hospital stays and spinal taps. She did this while also trying to juggle school work and friends. Molly finished her treatment in June of 2016, the summer before her senior year. There were a lot of ups and downs along the way. She developed steroid induced AVN (avascular necrosis) in her hips and knees. She received several surgeries at CHOP to help correct the damage, but eventually had a right hip replacement in July of 2016. She went on to have her left hip replaced in May of 2019 and her right knee replaced in July 2021. We are hoping that she will now be free of any pain and her other knee will be spared.
Although it was a rough road, Molly was fortunate to have many positive things come her way in those 2 and ½ years as well. We all had a great vacation with extended family to Justin’s Beach House (a respite for cancer patients and their families- www.justinjennings.org ) in Bethany Beach, DE. She had a huge Sweet Sixteen party, a helicopter ride, Taylor Swift and One Direction concerts, a hot air balloon ride and even a trip to LA to see a taping of "Dancing with the Stars" ( www.dreamcometrue.org )! All of the fun times with family and friends got her through the bad days.
In October of 2014, Trinity Pharmacy employees (the pharmacy that Rusty was a part of) planned the 1st annual MollySTRONG golf tournament to support and honor Molly. It was a fantastic, successful event and turned out to be the beginning of the MollySTRONG Foundation! It was a great idea to come together in support of Molly and use it to do good things!! See below about our 6 MollySTRONG golf tournaments and what they have gone on to do!
Click here for a video that Molly's sister, Maddy, made in June 2016 after Molly finished chemo.
Molly is living life to its fullest! Molly finished her chemo in June of 2016 and went on to enjoy her senior year at Emmaus High School and graduate with her class of 2017. She is in her last year at Lebanon Valley College in their 6 year doctorate of Physical Therapy program. She is having fun and working hard. We feel blessed that she has remained in remission and on June 4th, 2021 she was officially considered "cured"!.
There are very exciting things happening in terms of leukemia treatment options! We hope to continue to support the researchers at St. Jude's in their developments! Click below to read more...
We are a small nonprofit organization focused on helping finding a cure for hypodiploid ALL and helping other teens that have gone through a cancer diagnosis like Molly.We have found ways of doing this by supporting researchers at St. Jude's and establishing a college scholarship at Emmaus High School. We continue to look for ways to help and are always open to your ideas/suggestions.
Monetary donations are great, but sometimes the donation of your time can be more rewarding! If you or your group would like to help in some way, we would greatly appreciate your help at one of our events! Check back frequently for updates on events as we post them! Your time and talent is welcome and always appreciated.
The support for Molly and our family as she was going through treatment for hypodiploid ALL was amazing. So many friends and family and acquaintances from all over were there for us and we will never, ever forget it! We truly believe all the love and support helped her get where she is today. We don't want anyone not to have a support system as they go through this difficult time. If you know of a family that has a child/teen diagnosed with cancer and could use some help, please contact us.
MollySTRONG Foundation has been working in collaboration with the Henry Schueler 41 and 9 Foundation to give to St. Jude's Hospital. Henry Schueler also had hypodipoid ALL. Click below to read Henry's brave story and about their Foundation's mission.
We are proud to announce that we wil award two $500 college scholarships to two very deserving students of the graduating class of 2023 at Emmaus High School! Scholarship winners will be announced in May and will be invited to join us for dinner at the MollySTRONG Golf Tournament in July to be recognized.
The MollySTRONG Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Your contribution is tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. No goods or services were provided in exchange for your generous financial donation.
Jeanne Kuchta, President 610.297.6194 Rusty Kuchta 484.225.4668 mollystrongfoundation@gmail.com
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