Parksley mother and daughter face uphill health battle

Fighting any illness comes with a host of challenges: physical, emotional, and financial, to name a few.

For one Accomack County family, they’re dealing with double the hardships; however, they’re also getting some much needed support.

Emma Turner, 11, was diagnosed with Medulloblastoma this past July. It’s a fast-growing, high-grade tumor. According to the American Brain Tumor Association, it’s the most common of the embryonal tumors.

“She had radiation everyday,” Says her mother, Nikki Turner. “When that was finished, we might have had a little break, but then she had chemotherapy once a month for six months.”

Emma’s uphill battle is something Nikki knows all too well. The Parksley resident was diagnosed with stage four breast cancer in 2010. She tells 47ABC, she currently gets pet scans which look for tumors every three to six months and will be starting chemotherapy again.

“It’s kind of like a ‘treat where you find it’ wherever the tumors come up,” Describes Nikki. “If there’s treatment for it, that’s what we look into.”

As for her daughter, an MRI is scheduled in June to look for tumors followed by monthly doctors appointments. We’re told all of her appointments will be in Norfolk, Virginia.

To help with funds, the Exmore Diner stepped up.

Manager Crystal Hart tells 47ABC, it started with a lemonade stand this past Labor Day. Since their one-day fundraiser raised nearly 2,000 dollars, they decided to keep the sign explaining Nikki and Emma’s stories up in the restaurant.

“It just went so well that we decided that okay, childhood cancer is where the diner wants to focus on, the local community,” Says Hart.

Since then, Hart says donations have poured in. Customers who stop by the diner can donate directly to Emma and Nikki.

Hart tells us they’ve raised more than 3,700 dollars as of Monday. That figure includes both efforts from the lemonade stand plus in-house donations.

Since the Turners don’t know how long they will be fighting for their health, there is no fund-raising goal. They’re just happy for any help they can get.

“I always just think positive,” Says Emma.

To contact the Exmore Diner, visit their Facebook page.

You can also email the family at us4turners@yahoo.com with “Emma donation” in the subject line.