Seemingly healthy girl diagnosed with leukemia

She seemed like a perfectly healthy fourth-grader at Eastside, bouncing around the playground and having fun with her friends.

Then about a month ago Preslie Slatton was diagnosed with leukemia.

?You see them every day and you don?t think they can get sick like that,? said Leigh Hillis, one of Preslie?s teachers. ?I?ve never had a student diagnosed with such a serious illness. It just breaks your heart.?

Preslie,10, is currently at Vanderbilt Children?s Hospital undergoing treatment. In her honor, Eastside has organized a blood drive this Tuesday, May 22, that will take place at two locations.

The first location is Tennessee Technology Center from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., and the second location is Caney Fork Electric from noon to 6 p.m.

According to Hillis, she never noticed any signs Preslie was sick. Hillis said the child didn?t complain of feeling bad or ask to see the school nurse.

However at home she was complaining of achy joints and swelling around her knees and elbows. Doctors initially thought she might have a form of arthritis, but tests came back negative. That?s when Preslie was tested for leukemia and received the unfortunate news April 24. She will require a bone marrow transplant.

In addition to Hillis, Eastside teachers Stephanie George, Kim Cantrell and Jennifer Basham helped to organize the blood drives.

Preslie is the daughter of Tracie Hutchins and Jim Alan Slatton. Her grandparents are Jim and June Slatton, Linda Pegg, and Martha and James McBride.