Joshua Luke Crosby's Story

On June 16, 2011, Joshua Luke Crosby was born. He seemed perfect and healthy. Luke was initially

diagnosed, as a baby, with a minor heart condition, which was manageable, but otherwise, Luke was the perfectly normal little boy, and progressed through his toddler years with minimal health issues. In the Summer of 2017, at the age of 6, Luke’s life would change permanently. Luke began to have bad headaches, and was lethargic a lot. His personality began to change rapidly, as the headaches got worse. Several visits to the Emergency Room, with diagnoses ranging all over the place, left Luke eventually screaming with the headaches, and vomiting, until he would pass out. Eventually Luke was diagnosed with Encephalitis, and it was determined that he had a large mass of inflammation in his brain. To make matters worse, he suffered with Intracranial Hypertension (Increased Pressure in the Brain) because his cerebral spinal fluid wasn’t draining properly. The team of doctors diagnosed him with IH, and shortly afterward, a shunt was surgically placed in Luke’s head, to assist in the drainage of cerebral spinal fluid from the brain, into the abdominal cavity.

Just when you think things are getting better; in January, 2019, 18 months after his initial attack, Luke began to show different symptoms. He began to lean to the left, and tilt his head to the left when he walked. Luke’s vision was blurry, and his motor skills were rapidly declining. His school teacher reported a decline in his handwriting. Luke was taken back to the hospital, to once again undergo a battery of tests, and to eventually be diagnosed with more inflammation on his brain, only this time in a different area of the brain. (A more dangerous area than before). The neurologists were confident that the shunt was working properly, so more tests were done. This time Luke was tested for Multiple Sclerosis, and other Demyelinating diseases. In February, 2019, Luke received his diagnosis, as having MOG Antibody Disease, a rare neuro-autoimmune disease, and multi-phasic disseminated encephalomyelitis, that viciously attacks his brain. Our brave little man will now be subjected to lifelong treatments, which include immune suppressing drug infusions, IVIG immune-therapy and high dose steroids. These treatments will be in a desperate attempt to prevent another relapse or episode of inflammation in Luke’s brain. We have located a leading specialist in Luke’s rare neuro-autoimmune disease, who has agreed to treat him with state of the art treatments, and with vast knowledge of this type of disease, at his specialized clinic in Dallas Texas. In order for Luke to get the appropriate treatments, he needs to see this specialist in Dallas.

The road ahead is long, but Luke has his faith, and loves Jesus and praises Him daily. Luke is a brave little soldier, and willingly undergoes whatever needs to be done, in an effort to have a normal life. Joshua Luke Crosby is our little hero !

The Bogalusa Police Department sponsored a raffle for Luke and the drawing was held at 10:00 AM on July 31, 2019. Luke was present and drew the names of the winners. The raffle raised $2811.00 and Chief Bullen presented a check to the family.

If anyone wants to make a donation to Luke's Medical Fund, they can contact Captain David Miller at 985.570.4202 of mail donations to Capt. David Miller, c/o Luke Crosby, 214 Arkansas Avenue, Bogalusa, La.  70427