Despite leukemia diagnosis, little girl's smile and spirit shine on

In black, pointy-toed high heel shoes, Mckenzie Brownlee prances across her living room floor with ease. She stops, flashes a bright smile and strikes a pose by holding out the skirt of her red and white striped dress.

“Webo” she says to her mother, Tiffany Brownlee, which means “I love you” in Kenzie talk.

“I love you too,” Tiffany Brownlee responds.

Like many 2-year-old girls, Mckenzie flits from place to place. Her baby dolls need feeding, the cartoons need watching and her younger sister, 7-month-old Maddie, needs kissing.

She’s outgoing, full of energy and sometimes bossy. And she is the hero of her family because she has courageously fought acute myeloid leukemia, or AML, for the past eight months.

The diagnosis came when Mckenzie was only 18-months-old. Tiffany Brownlee said her daughter’s baby sitter had mentioned McKenzie was a little more tired than usual, her legs had numerous unexplained bruises and she was slightly pale. Tiffany Brownlee said the tell-tale signs of leukemia were overlooked at first.

“She was an active 2-year-old,” she said, “and she’s always been pale.”

Having worked as a pediatric nurse at Whiteman Air Force Base for several years, Tiffany Brownlee knew to request blood work be run on her daughter during her check-up. The results were shocking.

“Her blood count was critically low,” Tiffany Brownlee said. “They wanted her in the hospital immediately.”

The Brownlees had just been transferred to Moody Air Force Base in Georgia and Tiffany Brownlee was eight months pregnant. They had no friends or family nearby.

“I was scared,” she said. “We were new to the area.”

With little time to think or process the initial news, the Brownlees admitted Mckenzie to a local Georgia hospital where lab results revealed her platelet count was at 18,000. Normal range is between 150,000 to 400,000 for a healthy toddler.

“I was having so many emotions,” Tiffany Brownlee said, “and my husband had the fear of God in him.”

Mckenzie was then rushed to a Florida children’s hospital for more labs, which meant painful tests and multiple needle sticks.

“We had to hold her down so they could take blood,” Tiffany Brownlee said.

As the doctors worked to find out what was wrong with the toddler, Mckenzie’s lab values continued to drop and she had what would be the first of many platelet infusions. Mckenzie then underwent surgery to place a port for the Hickman catheter she still has today. The catheter, which Mckenzie calls her “tubies,” allowed the medical staff access to an intravenous line with fewer needle sticks.

More painful procedures followed including a spinal tap and bone marrow aspiration. To harvest Mckenzie’s marrow for testing, a large needle was placed in the bone in her hip. Tiffany Brownlee said nurses told her the test feels like getting hit with an aluminum bat over and over.

“But, Kenzie was up an hour later running around,” Tiffany Brownlee said.

Several long days later the doctors confirmed the AML diagnosis. Mckenzie needed chemotherapy and she needed it now. The Brownlees had a difficult decision to make. Do they begin the treatment in Florida alone? Or do they transfer her to Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City so Tiffany Brownlee, a Lincoln native, can surround herself and children with family and friends.

Richard and Tiffany Brownlee thought and discussed the options before opting for Kansas City. But, there was a major problem. Doctors said Mckenzie wasn’t healthy enough for a long car trip and doctors advised Tiffany Brownlee against flying because she was 34 weeks pregnant.

“I didn’t care about me,” Tiffany Brownlee said. “We got on a plane.”

While the girls of the family were headed home to Missouri, Richard Brownlee had to stay behind to fulfill his duties with his security forces squadron. He was eventually granted a transfer back to Whiteman Air Force Base and was able to rejoin his family in Sedalia.

“I never saw my house or my job in Georgia again,” Tiffany Brownlee said. “My husband packed up everything.”

In Kansas City, Mckenzie began her chemotherapy treatments with her mother by her side. When her beautiful, pale blonde hair began falling out, Richard Brownlee shaved his daughter’s head, which matched his own.

“It was itchy,” Tiffany Brownlee said. “She cried when she saw herself for the first time because she didn’t recognize herself, but she is beautiful bald.”

Mckenzie was administered chemotherapy drugs for 10 days. She was required to remain in the hospital for three weeks following the chemotherapy because she was prone to infection.

Side effects included mouth sores and diarrhea, but it didn’t stop the active, inquisitive toddler from stealing the hearts of the nurses, Tiffany Brownlee said.

“She was the floor mascot,” she said.

Over the next several months, Mckenzie’s chemotherapy continued and she went into remission. She relapsed after three treatments. Doctors kept adding new drugs, but her cancer cells doubled.

After days stuck inside a hospital room in isolation and months away from her beloved older sister, Lexie Weaver, Mckenzie began to show signs of depression. When the doctors offered a bone marrow transplant, the Brownlees decided against it because there were so many risks associated with the procedure.

“She only had a 10 percent chance of survival,” Tiffany Brownlee said. “Mckenzie just wanted to go home.”

The Brownlees brought Mckenzie home and they haven’t looked back. The doctors are estimating she has four to six months to live. Her days are full of swinging, swimming, long walks, kisses and hugs. Tiffany Brownlee quit her job as a nurse and is staying home with her three girls. She said the entire family is embracing their new motto, life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about dancing in the rain.

How to help:
A $5 pancake breakfast fundraiser will be held from 8 to 10 a.m. Saturday at Aplebee's in Warrensburg. Donations may also be sent to Brownlees, P.O. Box 844, Warrensburg, MO, 64093. More information is available at www.caringbridge.org/visit/mckenziebrownlee.