4-year-old Durango girl battles rare cancer

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4-year-old Durango girl battles rare cancer

Kaziyah Lewis diagnosed with neuroblastoma on Christmas Day
Tiarah Lewis swings her daughter, Kaziyah, 4, on Wednesday outside their La Plata County home. Kaziyah was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a rare form of childhood cancer, on Christmas Day.

4-year-old Durango girl battles rare cancer

Tiarah Lewis swings her daughter, Kaziyah, 4, on Wednesday outside their La Plata County home. Kaziyah was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a rare form of childhood cancer, on Christmas Day.
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Help available to families with severely ill kids

Given the rural nature of Durango, a support network has emerged to help families like Tiarah Lewis’ with expenses that come in dealing with children with complex medical conditions.
Dr. Kelly Miller, a pediatrician with Pediatric Partners of the Southwest, who helps coordinate services for families, said the first option is to keep children close to home – something that’s become more practical with the rise of telemedicine.
Unfortunately, for the most severe medical conditions, like the neuroblastoma Tiarah’s daughter, Kaziyah, is battling, telemedicine cannot replace in-person medical treatments.
“Her burden of disease and the complexity and intensity of her chemo is best done at Children’s Hospital,” Miller said.
More common forms of childhood cancer, leukemia and lymphomas, can be treated at Mercy Regional Medical Center, Miller said, and that helps reduce travel to the Front Range.
Economic support for families in Southwest Colorado is also available.
The Durango Derailers raises more than $50,000 a year to help support families with travel expenses, providing prepaid cards for the costs of gas, hotel stays and meals.
AeroAngel and aviation charity based in Denver, and Angel Flight, a similar service based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, can be used for non-urgent trips scheduled to the Front Range.
Colorado families served by Medicaid can use IntelliRide for car rides to their medical appointments.
Southwest Colorado is also graced with an anonymous donor who gives grants of up to $5,000 to families with children suffering from serious medical conditions, Miller said.
Anyone interested about services offered to families with children suffering from complex medical conditions can call Miller at Pediatric Partners of the Southwest at 375-0100.
parmijo@durangoherald.com

To help

Several online venues are available to help financially support the Lewis family as Kaziyah battles neuroblastoma:
Caring for Kaziyah, a GoFundMe page has raised $5,085 with a $10,000 goal.Conquer Cancer with Zuzu, a Facebook donation page has raised $110 with a goal of $5,000.Kaziyah’s List, a wish list for Kaziyah on Amazon.Tiarah Lewis also has a Facebook page, Conquer Cancer with Zuzu, and an Instagram page Conquer Cancer with Zuzu, where she posts updates about Kaziyah and her treatments.
People can also donate directly to the Lewis family using PayPal, Venmo, Cash App and Facebook Pay.

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