Kylie's Kids: Meet Luke

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – When a family member is diagnosed with cancer, often all the plans that were made before the diagnosis have to change.

That is what happened to Luke's family last summer when they found out he had leukemia.

But, even though this week's Kylies Kid has a lot of treatment left, his life is finally starting to get back to normal.

"He loves his sisters, loves to play," Nancy, Luke's mom said.

Luke, 6, has a lot of energy.

"I think he's always been a little extra full of life," Nancy said. "All for good reason, we come to find out."

Last summer, Luke and his family were about to leave for Yellowstone when Luke got sick. At first, doctors didn't know what was wrong.

"Didn't test positive for strep and just wasn't getting better a couple days later," Nancy said. "He had a bruise on his shin that we asked his doctor about while we were there."

Then came a diagnosis: leukemia.

"All plans change and all of a sudden your world is turned upside down," Nancy said.

Instead of Yellowstone, Luke spent most of the summer at Children's Minnesota, still smiling through every treatment.

"I don't know if it's the gift of his age or it's just the gift of Luke, but he's just so resilient," Nancy said.

One plan that didn't change was a new addition to the family, a puppy named Sunny D!

"I like playing with my dog a lot," Luke said.

"She's a good distraction for all of us," Nancy said.

Recently, Luke just got some very good news.

"We had a good milestone here in February. He finished most of the tough phases and started maintenance in the middle of February," Nancy said.

So, they're finally getting that trip to Yellowstone this summer.

"At the time you feel like you're never going to be able to do anything again," Nancy said. "We meet people who are leukemia survivors that are adults and have a family, and so he's going to be one of them, he will be."

Luke has been going through treatment since August. With leukemia, it takes roughly three years for the cancer to get out of the blood in boys. Maintenance does not mean Luke is cancer free, but he can move to getting chemotherapy once a month for the next two years.