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Vol. 20, No. 44, Wednesday, August 6, 2025 www.LamontLeader.com
Family leaves new home in Lamont for 10-year old son’s cancer treatment team in Ontario BY JANA SEMENIUK Lili Sikkema was excited for a fresh start when she moved to Lamont from Ont. a year ago with her husband Daniel and their 10-year-old son Gabriel. Gabriel, the Sikkemas’ only child, had been battling leukemia since he was two and was in remission for a second time. The move brought Daniel closer to his job in the oil and gas field and gave Lili an opportunity to work at the local elementary school while Gabe attended classes. Gabe was also thrilled to go to an overnight summer camp for the first time and was looking forward to another first this year; playing hockey. Everything changed one day in July when Lili noticed the tell-tale rash beginning to spread across Gabriel’s back. “(We went) to the Lamont Health Care Centre for blood tests and (they said) if there’s anything that shows up, we’ll call you,” she said. “They called me.” Lili said she and Daniel thought nothing of the slight rash the first time they saw it in 2017. Gabriel was two years old then, and initially doctors thought he might be suffering the effects of teething, seeing as he also had a slight fever. Two weeks later when the rash did not subside but instead, spread further across his small body, Lili knew something else was going on, but had no idea how it would change their lives forever. “(Gabe) was diagnosed with B Cell Lymphoid Leukemia. They said B Cell was the more favourable type because it’s easier to treat,” she said, describing the shocking news. “There was a 90 percent chance that
The Sikkema family, Lily, Daniel, and 10-year-old Gabriel, squeeze in for a selfie before attending the Lamont Summer Sizzler Rodeo on July 13. Ten days later, Gabriel was diagnosed with cancer for a third time. Photo: Lily Sikkema this treatment would work.” The treatment, Lili explained, included chemotherapy, steroids, spinal taps and bone marrow extractions over the next three years. While it sounds unimaginable for a toddler to endure, Lili said that, although Gabe did become sick, overall, he did remarkably well. “Kids are resilient. You know, they just somehow do it, and they don't complain, and they just manage. Kids are unbelievably amazing,” said Lili. For a year after treatments, Lili said Gabe had no issues. He started school and things seemed to be heading to normalcy, until Lili received a call from Gabe’s school one day. “The school called and said Gabe had a headache and he’s not feeling well. I picked him up and (immediately) looked at his stomach,” she said. “The rash was back.” The hospital confirmed Lili’s worst fears, sparking both parents’ anger
after watching their son endure three years of chemotherapy. “We were just so mad and sad. I thought, you’ve got to be kidding me. After three years of all this? They said he’s been off treatments for a year and a half so something worked,” she said. “(They said) we’re going to try this new thing. We’re going to do chemotherapy and something called immunotherapy.” According to the Canadian Cancer Society’s website, immunotherapy is a “type of cancer treatment that uses the body’s own immune system to fight cancer.” Lili said Gabe went through another two and a half years of immunotherapy, finishing his last few treatments at the U of A hospital in Edmonton when the family moved to Lamont. When Gabe finally ‘rang the bell’ at the hospital, signifying the end of his final treatment in Dec., Lili said he was in remission with no cancer detected in
any of his testing. With Gabe’s most recent relapse, however, Lili said the Leukemia was now found in his brain fluid and spine. The Sikkema family made the tough decision to travel back to Ont. where Gabe could be seen by a medical team who have known him since his first diagnosis while also having the support of family and friends. “Everything seemed fine, and my heart just sunk (at the news). Every time it comes back it gets more aggressive and more resistant to treatment,” said Lili. “We felt moving back (to Ont.) would be the best choice for him. They know him and he wouldn’t be in a strange hospital with strange doctors. Gabe is sad he didn’t get to say goodbye to his friends (in Lamont).” Lili said Gabe’s new schedule will include Car T Cell treatment where she said the team at the Sick Kids hospital in Toronto are the “leading pioneers”. “If Car T doesn’t work, then (we) have the bone marrow transplant. That’s the other option, then that’s it. There are no more options,” she said. Meanwhile, Lili said Daniel is unable to take any more time off work to be with his family and is struggling to keep up financially while Lili and Gabe are in the hospital in Ont. She said the future is uncertain. Lili’s sister started an online fundraising campaign for the family at givesendgo.com. looking to raise funds to keep the family going while supporting their son during his treatments. “Gabe is a pretty awesome kid, and he doesn't really complain much,” said Lili. “I just really hope that this treatment works, because we're just so sad for him to see him going through this again.”