On March 23, 2010 we took a trip to Ochsner ER that would change our lives forever. My husband Craig, a loving and caring father, devoted husband, and a long time employee of Limousine Livery as a Captain Chauffeur, had been going to work for the past two weeks in severe pain, he thought he had a pulled muscle or some kind of "back problem." On the morning of March 23rd 2010, I called his doctor to get an earlier appointment because he couldn't take the pain anymore. The nurse told us to just go to the ER because it sounded like he could have kidney stones. We went to Ochsner ER in New Orleans, La on Jefferson hwy and sat for hours before being seen. The nurse finally called him and brought us back in an examination room, it was so cold and bright in there. In walks a doctor introducing himself as Dr. McNaulty, and starts going over Craig's medical history, he said I see you had a mild heart attack in September of 2009, high cholesterol, etc. Craig and i were impressed that the doctor had done his homework! Craig started explaining to Dr. McNaulty the constant pain he was having in his lower back and side. The doctor completed his examination, ordered multiple lab tests for his bloodwork, and a MRI. After the MRI and bloodwork they sat us back out in the waiting room where we sat for about 2 hours. The nurse called us back and the doctor was already in the room waiting for us. He asked us to both take a seat, he started explaining that Craig's calcium in his blood was fataly high, redblood count was high, potassium extremly low. Then the words that i thought i would never hear, the MRI revealed a large tumor on Craig's L4 and they want to admit him to run further testing. After much time spent thinking, Craig was admitted, the next morning, a female doctor came in and said she was waiting on someone from Hematology/ Oncology to come up to meet with us. Dr. Seal, Hem/Onc, came in an introduced himself and said that he would be doing a bone marrow biopsy to rule out Myeloma. I remember Craig was in so much pain, and it seemed like none of the pain meds were helping at all. We had to wait till the next day for the results which seemed like years, and what do uou know- he was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma (cancer of the bone marrow, bone, and blood) on March 24th, 2010. He’s been receiving aggressive chemo and radiation since the day after his diagnosis. One of the four chemo meds is over $9,000 a month! He is currently in a wheelchair and unable to work, he has tumors starting on his L4 up his spine to his neck, his ribs, on both hips, down his left leg, and his left arm. The cancer is deteriorating his bones; he already fractured three ribs and his vertebra just trying to turn in the bed to get comfortable. He started radiation along with his chemo in mid April, it seemed to relieve some of the lower back pain, but it is a constant struggle he has bad days and worse days.  But he is still fighting daily for his family and his strength to be able to return to work!

July 10, 2010

Well this has been a journey for all of us, Craig has been in and out of the hospital since being diagnosed for different issues from the Multiple Myeloma. Dr. Brown, his Hematologist/ Oncologist, told us that there is nothing that he can do for Craig anymore at Ochsner. Craig is not ready to give up, he wants to see our children grow up and he wants to live again. After alot of research, we have narrowed it down to The Myeloma Institute in Little Rock Arkansas, and Moffit Cancer Center in Tampa, Fl.  I am leaning more with Arkansasjust for the simple fact that it is Hurricaine season and with the luck we have been having a hurricaine will go to Tampa while we are there trying to get treatment. He is not doing better at all, he seems to be getting worse as each day passes, the past week it has taken everything in him to get out of bed just to go to the bathroom. His legs are very weak and keep going out on him, he tries to walk but falls due to the numbness and weakness in his legs and no feeling in his feet. He sleeps all day and stays up all night, his days and nights are mixed up, it really seems like he is giving up! i wont let him, through my prayers for him and others prayers we will lift him up, please everyone reading this, pray for him. We are trying to plan a trip to Arkansas so we can start his treatment, we have wasted so much time already, but we need your help. Any donation is appreciated, $1 can go a long way for us. I am the only one that has been working and trying to work a 50hr+ work week, take care of 3 kids, and my husband is hard. Ive been paying what bills are most important, but everything is starting to pile up. It is so important to our children that he gets this treatment started as soon as possible, please make your donation so Craig can travel miles to treat his Myeloma.

Thanks and GOD BLESS,

Toni Labat-Moore