My granddaughter Lauren is a survivor, below is her story.
At 6 months of age, Lauren went to the doctor for a cough and a runny nose. As a result of a very thorough exam, her pediatrician discovered a mass in her abdomen. An ultrasound and a CT resulted in an appointment in the Hematology / Oncology department at Comers Children's Hospital. She was admitted immediately and underwent biopsy surgery; Lauren was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma, stage 2B, intermediate risk. The plan was to watch and wait, as many tumors like Lauren's will begin to shrink on their own. Almost exactly a year after her diagnosis, the tumor began to grow. Lauren went through 3 rounds of chemotherapy. After the third round, Lauren underwent surgery in order to try and remove as much of the tumor as possible. After surgery, the surgeons informed us that they were able to remove the entire tumor. Lauren now has 6 month checkups. Each checkup has shown no signs of Neuroblastoma. Lauren is now in clinical remission.
I'm shaving my head to raise money for childhood cancer research! Did you know that kids' cancers are different from adult cancers? It's true. And childhood cancer research is extremely underfunded. So I decided to do something about it by raising money for cures.
Now I need your help! Will you make a donation? Every dollar makes a difference for the thousands of infants, children, teens, and young adults fighting childhood cancers.