Last year, we shared the story of 14-year-old Eden Green, who loves to take photos and dance. Eden was in treatment for a form of childhood cancer so rare, that doctors did not have a clinical name for it. After 4 months of treatment on a clinical trial at Texas Children's Hospital under the care of Dr. Jennifer Foster, Eden was declared cancer-free in March 2019.
When Jeff's daughter Kennedy was born, like all new dads, he vowed to always be there for her and protect her.
But when Kennedy was 2 years old and diagnosed with cancer, he realized he couldn't live up to part of that pledge. He could not protect her from cancer.
When my daughter Alex was first diagnosed with neuroblastoma, my gut instinct was to avoid other “cancer moms.”
That was 22 years ago and although I still dislike the term “cancer mom”, I have learned how lonely childhood cancer is when you don’t have other moms by your side who understand your experience like no one else does. We all belong to a club that no one wants to be in.
Today, I am honored to a member of this community of moms.
As a child, Jennifer was diagnosed with hepatoblastoma, a rare cancer that originates in the lobes of the liver. While in treatment, Jennifer’s nurse Pat Brophy, who was also ALSF Founder Alex Scott’s nurse, supported Jennifer and her parents through a scary, uncertain time.
Today, Jennifer Toth is a pediatric oncology nurse at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, an ALSF Center of Excellence institution. She shared her story with us.
Eden is a 13 year old who loves to shoot photos and smile for her own snapshots. After being unable to walk or practice her favorite activity, dancing, for nearly a year, she was diagnosed at age 10 with a cancer no doctor had ever seen before. They tried standard chemotherapies for two different types of solid tumors similar to her cancer and after many months doctors deemed her cancer-free in March 2016.
Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) founder Alex Scott battled neuroblastoma. When she began hosting lemonade stands, her family thought Alex would want the money raised to help kids who were also diagnosed with neuroblastoma.
But Alex had other plans—she wanted to help all kids. Alex wanted to find cures for all types of childhood cancer. Alex knew that cures weren’t just for her. Cures are what every child deserves.
When I was 4 years old in August 2005, I was diagnosed with stage IV neuroblastoma. Thirteen years later, I’m still fighting every day and I don’t intend on stopping any time soon.
At 3-and-a-half years old, Sam's parents found a large lump on Sam's abdomen. He underwent surgery to remove it and was cancer-free for a short time. When the cancer returned, it was treated like stage 4 neuroblastoma. Sam has been cancer-free since 2017!
