Less than two months ago, little Mia Grace Waller of Lacombe was your average precocious youngster, getting ready to celebrate her 4th birthday.

That all changed on July 31 when she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

The little girl had been to the doctor a few days earlier for a persistent fever, and as she had no other cold symptoms, the doctors decided to run some blood tests. More tests were ordered when it was revealed her red and white blood cells, as well as her platelets, were quite low, and she was anemic.

Krystal Lala, left, helps her daughter, Mia Grace Waller, celebrate her 4th birthday at Children'€™s Hospital.

Two days later tests showed the counts were even lower. Mia’s mom, Krystal Lala, was told to admit her to Children’s Hospital in New Orleans. Physical exams there showed her kidneys were enlarged, and a bone marrow biopsy and aspiration finally confirmed the diagnosis.

A cancer of the white blood cells, ALL leaves its patients extremely susceptible to infection. Krystal, 22, has been forced to quit her job at an engineering company to care for her daughter.

“She’s can’t be in daycare for at least six months,” said Krystal, who also has a 5-month-old son. “She also can’t be around any other kids who have been in daycare in the last two weeks.”

Mia was immediately started on chemotherapy and steroid treatments. Expected to be in the hospital for nearly a month, she was released after only two weeks.

Doctors told Krystal that Mia’s age and the fact she is a girl give her good odds for survival. In the meantime, the youngster must wear a surgical mask and has gained a substantial amount of weight due to the treatments. There’s no clear time frame for how long it might take to beat the illness.

Sky Lala, Krystal’s father, spent a lot of time with his daughter and granddaughter at the hospital, along with several other family members. While there, he talked with families of other patients in similar situations, who often spend weeks at a time at the facility, and realized the extent of the burden placed on them.

“A lot of these families are young and just starting out,” he said. “They don’t have the safety net in place that others might have.”

Many parents in Krystal’s situation may take family medical leave, generally for up to 12 weeks. For most patients, though, the treatment period can last for over two years.

The hospital referred the family to several organizations that can assist with medical expenses, but there are none to assist with the day-to-day problems of utility bills, groceries, insurance, travel to and from the hospital, and so on.

To help Krystal and others address the issue of daily living expenses, Sky created a nonprofit organization in Mia’s name, The Mia Grace Leukemia Foundation.

“Mia will be the first beneficiary, but we hope it will grow so we can help other families that are faced with this,” said Sky. “After she’s older, it would be so awesome to walk in that hospital, find a family that needs help, and just say ‘here you go’.”

The foundation will most likely participate along with several other organizations in the Tour de Tammany, a family bike ride and fundraiser on the Tammany Trace. The event will kick off at the Koop Drive trailhead on Nov. 1.

As Krystal copes with Mia’s frequent treatments while also caring for her infant son, she’s grateful her close-knit family is there to support her. She said preparing to evacuate prior to Hurricane Gustav had her especially “stressed out,” as she had to consider where they might take Mia in the event of a medical emergency.

“We were worried that if we stayed, we wouldn’t be able to get to the hospital in New Orleans, and if we left we didn’t know if there would be something nearby,” she said. “Luckily we went to stay with family in northern Alabama, and there’s a Children’s Hospital in Birmingham, about an hour away from where we were.”

Friends and family members are posting flyers and collecting donations at local businesses, and donations may be made at a number of local banks, including Capital One, Parish National Bank, Resource Bank and Central Progressive Bank. Donations can also be made online at www.miagracefoundation.blogspot.com, or mailed to P.O. Box 969, Lacombe, LA 70445.