6/24/2009 6:02:00 PM Girl copes with skin condition
By T.J. JERNIGAN Staff Reporter
Anna Kaye Bennett is sometimes mistaken as a cancer patient. But other than a little-known skin condition called alopecia areata, she is a perfectly healthy three-year-old.
Anna Kaye is the daughter of Trish and Michael Bennett of the Arlington community. The Bennetts are both graduates of Neshoba Central High School, and the two have lived in and around Philadelphia their entire lives.
In August of 2008, Brooke Clay, a close friend of the family discovered a bald spot about the size of a half dollar in the back of Anna Kaye's head.
"Brooke is a beautician turned pre-school teacher and she would always fix Anna Kaye's hair," Trish said. "When she noticed the balding, she knew right away that she probably had a condition called alopecia."
Alopecia areata is a highly unpredictable, autoimmune skin disease resulting in the loss of hair on the scalp and elsewhere on the body, according to the foundation which bears its name. It usually starts with one or more small, round, smooth patches.
While the condition is usually driven by another illness like cancer or autoimmune diseases, Anna Kaye's case is not linked to any other health problems, and besides losing her hair and some pitting of the fingernails, she shows no other side effects.
After seeing the family pediatrician, the Bennetts set out to find a doctor that knew something about the condition, and soon realized that very little is known about the disease and finding medical treatment for it would be merely impossible.
"Most dermatologists will only treat children ages nine and up," said Michael. "We had a devil of a time trying to find someone that could help us."
After multiple blood tests were done at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and at M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Texas, doctors concluded that besides a rapid case of hair loss, Anna Kaye was perfectly healthy. Her condition moved extremely fast though, and in less than a year the girl went from having a full head of hair to no hair at all.
"Because she is bald a lot of people make the misconception that she has cancer or some other deadly disease," Trish said. "What we want people to realize is that she is not sick at all, she just doesn't have any hair."
Now that Anna Kaye is almost completely bald, her parents have switched from trying to find treatment for the condition to trying to cope with it.
"The doctors have said that her case will probably be permanent because it progressed so rapidly, so she may never have hair again," said Michael. "We want her to be strong and confident so we aren't forcing her to do anything she doesn't want to do."
The couple lets their daughter decide whether or not to wear a hat on family outings, and will also let her decide if she wants to wear a wig when she gets old enough to make that decision.
When the day comes that she does want a wig, she won't have any problem getting one as several people have already cut and donated their hair to be made into wigs for her.
Her cousin, Drew Burton, recently grew his hair out and had it cut and saved for Anna Kaye. Clay has also donated locks of her hair to the family as well.
Anna Kaye's parents are so thankful.
"We know that one day she will want to wear a wig, but since she is so young we are not in any hurry to force that on her," Trish said.
Watching their daughter lose nearly a whole head of hair in a single year has not been easy for the Bennetts, but fortunately a tight-knit family, good friends, and a few amazing people in the community have led the family to really appreciate the place they call home.
Anna Kaye's big brother, Steryot Holland, has been described by his parents as "the rock throughout this whole ordeal."
Trish said that Steryot's big brother shadow has given Anna Kaye someone to look up to and depend on for protection and comfort.
"We have a very large extended family," said Michael. "My parents live right up the road from us, and we usually have a huge group of kids over at our house. They treat Anna Kaye just like everybody else, and try not to single her out."
Michael said the ladies who keep Anna Kaye at daycare at First Baptist Church of Philadelphia have been a great support as well.
"They took us in their arms from the very first day she was diagnosed," he said. "Even her friends at daycare don't seem to notice her condition. At that age, kids are still as sweet as angels."
Shortly after his daughter was diagnosed with Alopecia, Michael's co-workers at Tyson Poultry pooled together a small collection of money to give to her for toys and other items. Friends of the family in the community have shown the goodness in their hearts by offering support as well.
"When people see us in a store or restaurant, it's almost as if they are too nice and sympathetic," said Trish. "It blesses our hearts that the people in this town treat us so well."
Reader Comments
Posted: Thursday, June 25, 2009
Article comment by:
Jeffery Woytovich
I am the founder of the Children's Alopecia Project and we are based in Reading, PA. We have 500+ families that are part of the CAP family. We have support groups in 5 different states and will be holding our first convention in Philadelphia called Alopeciapalooza, August 7th -9th at the Sheraton Society Hill.
Visit and register at www.childrensalopeciaproject.org As with all events from CAP the CAP Kids with alopecia are free!
