Prayers needed for a friend!

The support and love this family and their friends have for one another and everyone they meet is very awesome. And, because I totally know I can count on you for this, I have a very special prayer request.

I have a friend whom I have never met in person. She lives in Australia. Her name is Deb and she is very gravely ill with Leukemia at the moment. Here's her story:

At age 10, Deb became ill for the first time with leukemia. She fought the fight valiantly and her doctors were able to send her into remission. Somewhere along the way, her mother also developed cancer and also survived. Next, many years later, Deb met Rob at university and fell in love. They courted and dated for maybe 6 yrs and married almost 10 yrs ago. I guess the stress of planning her wedding caused her body to again become wracked with leukemia. Again, she fought the good fight and went into remission. Then, 6 yrs ago, she became the mother of a beautiful little girl, Carolyn. Her pregnancy was rough. She had severe hyperemesis and the stresses of the tough pregnancy and new motherhood once more sent Deb spiralling downward battling leukemia. Once more, she was able to fight it off and go into remission. She yearned for another baby; her family wasn't complete. Possibly because of her fears of hyperemisis again, she suffered thru secondary infertility. Thus, Deb and I met almost 3 yrs ago on a site called Fertility Friend where women who are trying to conceive gather to support each other. While Deb was trying so hard to get pregnant, her mother's cancer came back full force. Deb was terribly saddened to find her mum so ill as she and her mother were very close. Her mother kept how serious things were from Deb at first because she didn't want Deb to be sad. Deb managed to conceive a beautiful baby boy who was born not quite a year ago in August. But, sadly, during her pregnancy, just after Mother's Day last year, Deb's beloved mum passed away. And to make matters worse, Deb's pregnancy was a virtual repeat of her first with severe hyperemesis once more. She had to carry a bucket around with her to work as she couldn't afford to take the time off to stay home. And around the time her mother passed on, Deb's level 2 ultrasound revealed slight markers for Down's syndrome in her unborn baby. Deb is a very loving soul and wouldn't fathom ending the pregnancy because of this. But, her husband had been struggling watching how ill his wife was carrying this pregnancy and the thought of the baby having something wrong with it caused him to shut down emotionally on the pregnancy. When little Tobias was born last August, he showed no signs of any illness or other birth defect yet sadly, his father wouldn't even hold him nor try to bond with him. In January, after a few weeks of being ill with what Deb thought was just bronchitus or a cold, Deb learned that once more, her cancer was back. To make matters worse, her marriage seemed to be crumbling. Toward the end of January, her husband finally confessed that he'd been having an affair with someone he'd met thru a newspaper ad when Deb was in hospital giving birth to their son. His mistress had found herself pregnant in December and opted to terminate her pregnancy as she didn't want to be a mother. Deb's husband decided in late January that he was thru with the relationship after nearly 16 yrs together and 10 yrs of marriage. He moved in with his mistress. But saint that Deb is, she didn't demand divorce or take vengeance in her hands. Instead, she welcomed her estranged hubby into her home as often as he would come to spend time with the children. She hadn't told him about her relapse on her leukemia because she didn't want him to stay with her out of pity or greed. Just before Easter of this year, Tobias was hospitalized in grave condition. He had a bad case of meningitus and they nearly lost him 2 times. It looked like Rob might have come to his senses and returned to his family but he didn't. Instead, he began demanding that his wife go to the banks and assume the entire mortgage of their house and pay him for his "half" of it. Deb's immune system has been completely compromised and she's been mostly unable to work since January of this year. She has undertaken extremely high doses of chemotherapy to try to fight off her leukemia. She has struggled to make out a will and to write letters to each of her children for the important days in their lives that she most likely won't live to see, like Tobia's first birthday, and Carolyn's 16th birthday or when they graduate, have their first dates, get married and have children, etc. She has searched her soul deeply to leave her children with people who will love them and cherish them and keep them together. Since May 11th, Deb has rebounded 2 times from near death. Her greatest desire at this time is to live long enough and be well enough to celebrate Tobias' 1st birthday with him. She had also wanted to be well and at home when Carolyn celebrated her 6th birthday recently but her illness just wouldn't allow it. She was still mostly conscious at that time though so she did get to have the kids come to her hospital room to have a mini celebration. Since just before July 4th, Deb has mostly been unable to type or write to me herself. She has 2 very good friends with her now from childhood with whom I have been corresponding almost daily. Deb has had many heart attacks since May 11th. She is on kidney dialysis as her kidneys are shutting down. She cannot continue her chemotherapy as her body is too weak currently and the chemo would kill her. During my last conversation with Deb, she was fighting a vicious nausea caused by intense headaches. Her leukemia is completely shutting down her body. She is having liver difficulties, her breathing is ragged and she's on total oxygen at this time. She is allergic to morphine and another type of heavy duty pain relief med and cannot have the pain relief offered to most terminally ill cancer patients. Her husband still carries on with his mistress as though he never loved Deb at all. When he learned she was doing chemotherapy once more, he told her that it looked like he had traded her in for a better model at just the right time then. I've just been devastated by how quickly things have gone downhill for this dear lady. She has worked for 11 yrs with children who have learning disabilities and other physical issues from birth to 13 yrs of age. She has taught her daughter compassion and love and about inner beauty. She has raised her to have a strong faith in Heavenly Father and in miracles and the power of prayer. Tonight, as Deb's friends ate dinner with the children, little Carolyn told them that she had learned about miracles and how Christ's answers prayers and works miracles thru faith. She told her mum's friends that she was going to pray to God and Jesus that they would send her Gramma back to Earth so that she could take care of her mum and make her all better that her mum needed a miracle. Another night, when Carolyn was struggling so with why her mum was ill and not home with her, K told her that sometimes a person is such an angel while here on Earth that God takes them to Heaven to take care of the children there to sort of prepare Carolyn that her mum may pass away like her gramma did. Carolyn then that night prayed to God that he not take her mummy away as she still needed her here with her. She said that she knew the children in Heaven would understand and would He please take her barbies instead for them to play with. As I sit and type this tonight, K has told me that the docs tending to Deb have said there is little short of a miracle that can help her now. She's had either a stroke or a brain bleed about this time yesterday and has been in a coma since. They have run tests and her white blood cell count (the bad kind) are way high and climbing. Deb is having bleed after bleed and they are not able it seems to put the blood in fast enough due to the graveness of her illness. My prayers go out to her and her family and her friends there watching over her. I have fervently wished and prayed that she be able to see Tobias turn 1 next month but I fear that time is not on her side. My prayers are that Deb know how loved she is and that she find peace and comfort in her last hours. Please pray with me that when the end comes, it is without pain other than the heartache each left behind will feel. Please also pray that the children will continue to have such strong faith as little Carolyn now has and that they will be looked after, loved, cherished, and kept together as their mummy wished. Also please pray that K and A, Deb's dear friend's there with her find comfort in this dark hour. K is struggling with her faith at this time. She cannot fathom how having her best friend from birth torn from her children's arms as babes is fair or just in this world. Please pray that somehow, they may all be comforted and learn that they will have a chance to see Deb once more pain free and free from the illnesses and cancers that wrack her body. Please also pray that I will be able to pass on Heavenly Father's divine plan to them so that they may find comfort in knowing that while Deb is leaving this life, she will be reunited with them in the next for all eternity. Thanks for hanging with me and for praying for my beloved friend Deb.