"There's Always Room For Miracles"

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Story Published: Mar 24, 2008 at 6:46 PM PDT

By Valerie Hurst

Shayla's made an incredibly tough decision to stop her treatment in Seattle.
She wants to give it a rest and enjoy her life without intervention.

Little Ava was a top item on Shayla Holwegner's "to do" list when she decided to stop her treatment.

"On our way home we picked her up, so it's a kind of celebration I guess of being home," she tells Action News.

But the Ronald McDonald house in Seattle wanted to celebrate Shayla, too.
The hospital recapped her one year stay there with a special online film.
Shayla says her rare bone cancer was finally under control and doctors told her now would be a good time to decide if she wants to stop treatment for a while.
The chemo only makes her feel worse than the original sickness.
Shayla took them up on the offer...
She says she's made these tough decisions before...

"I chose to keep my leg!"

Back in June, her doctor advised her to amputate the cancerous leg.
With dreams of playing volleyball someday again, she said no, and now walks with the cane her best friend made for her.

'There's always room for miracles and stuff that he's never seen..."

Shayla's mom Renee adds, "She's displayed to us that maturity and grace in the face of huge challenge."

Now, Shayla and her mom, dad, sister and Ava the pup, plan to take strength from the joys of being home.
Shayla says it's its own kind of medicine.

"It's a lot of faith, faith in yourself that things will work out for you...."

Shayla's mom stresses that Shayla does have medical options.
She has another appointment with her Seattle doctor in a few months, and will find out then if her cancer's changed at all.
If it has, she'll make more tough decisions about those options.

You can keep track of Shayla's progress by visiting her online journal at www.caringbridge.org/visit/shayla-la

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