After Loss of an Eye, Hayley Is Healing

WINSTED — Friends and family members of 2-year-old Hayley Kolosky gathered Saturday, April 28, at Laurel Hill Health Care for a benefit dinner to honor and support the little girl, who recently lost an eye due to a malignant tumor.

The daughter of Laurie and Peter Kolosky, Hayley was diagnosed and treated for retinoblastoma, a type of cancer that affects children from birth to age 5. Hayley was fortunate to have had the disease discovered early and have just one eye removed, in time to save her other eye.

Jan Bush, director at Laurel Hill, said she was proud to host an event for Hayley and noted that residents, families and staff wanted to do something for the Kolosky family and raise awareness about this uncommon affliction.

"They wanted to express concerns and further publicize the fact this disorder exists in our community," Bush said. "There are ways to look for the disease early on so it can get recognized."

Retinoblastoma affects 3 percent of children under the age of 15, but 87 percent of children who have the disease, mostly in developing countries, do not survive.

Bush said the Kolosky family would receive all proceeds from Saturday’s dinner and that the Koloskys said they planned to donate a majority of the funds to research on retinoblastoma.

"It was a nice event," said Bush. "It was well received by public. We had a raffle and everyone was very generous."

Cases of retinoblastoma are generally uncommon. Ninety percent of all cases have no family history of the disease and 97 percent of survivors typically have moderate to severe visual impairment.

For further information about retinoblastoma or to help support the cause and research, visit retinoblastoma.net.