"Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness in your warm greeting."
Mother Teresa

Smile

Cancer stripped her of everything including her life but it could not steal away God's LOVE, PEACE and the JOY that radiated through her. Korrine never stopped SMILING!
Korrine Lannie Croghan

Korrine Croghan was a vivacious 14-year-old girl who lived all of her life in Livermore, CA. She had a love for animals, sports, and most of all, family. Korrine was a straight “A” student while attending Mendenhall Middle School and was working hard in her first trimester at Granada High. She was a great friend to many and was everything that a brother, mother and father could ask for in a daughter. Korrine was the type of girl who would greet you with a wide smile and look into your eyes and truly would want to know how you were doing

Korrine & Cancer

On December 20th, 2007, Korrine was diagnosed with Choriocarcinoma with a germ cell element. Choriocarcinoma is a very rare type of cancer in teenage girls and inflicts less than 200 nationwide each year. Although the cancer started in her left ovary, the cancer had spread to her right ovary, lungs and liver. After the removal of a cantaloupe sized tumor in her left ovary on December 21st of 2007, Korrine, endured 10 months of intense chemotherapy designed for adult men.

During the course of her treatment, Korrine suffered many complications. In early April of 2007, her liver began to bleed. After staying at Kaiser Oakland for almost two weeks, Korrine was transfered to UCSF and spent a month in the intensive care unit. The doctors at UCSF Medical Center were finally able to stop her bleeding liver, but, not before it filled her abdomen with 5 liters of blood that had to be drained via a tube inserted into her stomach. On top of that, both of Korrines’ lungs collapsed while undergoing a CT scan that almost took her life. Because of that, 2 liters of fluid needed to be drained off of her lungs with the use of another drainage tube. Throughout her treatment Korrine needed numerous blood and platelet transfusions. She had nosebleeds that lasted an hour on several occasions. At one point, she had 18 intravenous tubes running through her body filled with anti-bacterials, anti-fungals, nutrition, painkillers and chemotherapy. Korrine miraculously made it through those tough days at UCSF and returned to Kaiser Hospital in Oakland. She was finally stable and was released to go home in late June. Just as things were starting to look up for her, she suffered septic shock in July that forced her to go back into intensive care at Kaiser in Santa Clara for 2 weeks.

Korrine returned home in late July and went through imaging scans to see if the cancer had disappeared. The scans always came back good, but not great. In an effort to kill and stop the remaining cancer cells, she underwent an emergency round of chemotherapy in early September. Unfortunately, it did kill the remaining cancer and her doctors had run out of options.

Korrine spent her last days at home with her family reading books and loving on her cats and dog. She passed away quietly, at home, on October 27th, 2008. Through it all, Korrine had a positive attitude and never gave up or complained. Many consider Korrine a hero.

Team KC

The Team KC website was originally started as a way to encourage, educate, raise awareness, and keep friends and family informed with accurate information on Korrine's treatment and progress. Family, classmates, friends, community members, and complete strangers rallied to support Korrine and her family through her fight against Choriocarcinoma. We were amazed by the amount of support we received, and it is now our desire to give back. In March, 2009, Team KC became an official nonprofit by joining forces with Kaiser Foundation Hospital. All monies raised by Team KC will directly benefit pediatric cancer patients and their families. All monetary contributions are tax deductible.

Our Mission: To help improve the quality of life of pediatric cancer patients and their families. We wish to supply children with fun activities, toys and anything else that will brighten and better their lives. Monies will also be used to help parents pay for bills and defray the costs of gas, food and lodging that go along with caring for a child with cancer.

Stay Positive, LIVESTRONG & Welcome to Team KC!

*This is the official Team KC website and the only website approved by the Croghan family. Please do not use content, images, or video from this site without permission. This is an effort to respect the family's privacy and ensure that all content is accurate and approved. Thank you for your cooperation.
A Note From Korrine (written after her 4th round of Chemo)...

Hello everyone! It's me, Korrine. I just wanted to take a
moment to thank each and every one of you for supporting me through emails,
visits, food, gifts, and most importantly, prayer. Without it, I probably
wouldn't have made it this far. Anyways, on a happier note, I am happy to
announce that I am feeling very good. This last round of chemo hit me pretty
hard, but I think that it is more exiting to end things with a big BANG! I will
try to start writing things for the blog now that my chemo therapy is over, but
until then, just know that I love every single one of you and I am always
thinking about my family, friends, and even the people who I've never met
before. Thanks for joining my battle and for making this experience "The
Experience of a Lifetime." LIVESTRONG! And stay positive.

Korrine Lannie Croghan

Monday, September 8, 2008

Rejoice in Hope, Be Patient in Tribulation, be Constant in Prayer. Romans 12:12

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Much love and many prayers to you all ~La Familia Cortez

Anonymous said...

Psalm 46 1 God is our refuge and strength,an ever-present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.
Beloved Croghan family, Yes, God is our strength and refuge. Please be assured of continual prayer for each of you. May the peace that passes understand,from God, sustain you.

Amen

Anonymous said...

Dear Korrine and family
We are so thankful Lord for a family that knows you and loves you. Your word is such a comfort. When I read this verse It spoke volumes to me. Thank you for this faithful family. They are a light and a hope in our midst. Please watch over this sweet family and provide all their precious needs. Give Korrine strength and joy to complete her school work and continued healing.
You are an Awesome God, and we need and love you!
amen
sandi

Lorri said...

I think you mean Romans 12:12 :)

Love that verse, keep it right where I see it every morning! Here's the NIV version:

Be joyful in hope
patient in affliction
faithful in prayer.

I do all for you Korrine! Lifting you up today: joyfully because I love you as a sister in the Lord; patiently because I know how very long the cancer road is; faithfully because I never want you to feel forgotten or that we have become weary of praying for you. I know I speak for myself and the rest of the bloggies, we will not stop praying until you are healed.

Love you dear little sister in the Lord...bless you today...Lorri

Anonymous said...

Amen.

I hope all of you have a great day.

Anonymous said...

Very true and touching thank you for sharing!
we will never grow weary or stop praying for you sweet Korrine..
Have a wonderful day
Tamika Riddiough

Sue said...

Happy Tuesday Croghans!

Thinking of you all and sending many prayers and much love.

Love,
Sue

Anonymous said...

We will never stop praying for you brave one. Continue your healing and know that you are loved.

The Campbell's