Help and Hope Happen Here

4 year old Brooke Healey was at her Aunt's house and her father Steve noticed that her hand was shaking. Not too far after that, her mom Stefani brought Brooke to get her hand looked at and then came the diagnosis of DIPG. Brooke lived for 8 months after her January 2013 diagnosis and passed away 8 months later, after going through very difficult treatment which left no room for the so called Honeymoon period. Both Steve and Stefani have been dedicating much of their time to the cause of DIPG for over a decade with their Brooke Healey Foundation and Steve's work on the DIPG/DMG Collaborative.

Elizabeth Lowman was able to share with us a true success story as her daughter Austen, who was diagnosed with Embryonal Rhabdomyosarcoma before her 5th birthday in 2017, went through 6 months of treatment, now is a soon to be 14 year old 8th grader who has been able to lead as normal of a life as possible over 8 years since her original diagnosis. It is always great to be able to publish successful journeys of kids and their families who have been through a Pediatric Cancer experience. 

By the time she turned 6 years old, Lilly Moss had already been through her struggle with Leukemia which she was diagnosed with in 2008 when she was 3 years old and had started vocal lessons, and two years later she started playing the piano. By the time she was 16 Lilly had started writing her own songs and now, just 5 years later at the age of 21, Lilly is one of the rising stars as a singer/songwriter in the world of Country Music. Lilly is also a very committed advocate and voice for the cause of Pediatric Cancer.

Tony Garcia is now a 43 year survivor of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia and has become an activist and advocate for the cause of Pediatric Cancer. Tony is a second time podcast guest and he will update us on the past 6 months in which his book is now available at both St. Judes and MD Anderson for patients and visitor reading in both Spanish and English, and has had a very successful book signing which had lines out the door in his hometown of Brownsville, Texas, 

9 year old Miles Isbell had unrelenting headaches which began in the summer of 2020, leading to his diagnosis of Medulloblastoma, the most common form of Pediatric Brain Cancer. Miles fought this disease for two years before passing away in October of 2022. He did not go down quietly however. Miles helped to raise 3 million dollars in one evening during a fundraising event, earning hm the nickname The Miracle Kid. Miles was also honored at the Endeavor Awards for his heroism and bravery. 

Mallory Fletcher took her 5 year old son Nolan to his Pediatrician for his annual physical in October of 2025. Nolan was feeling fine and had no visible health issues but while feeling Nolan's abdomen, his pediatrician felt that it was abnormally hard. Acting quickly, Mallory was told to take Nolan to the Emergency room of a local hospital and a large tumor was found that was covering much of Nolan's abdomen. The diagnosis was given of Ganglioneuroblastoma and Nolan is currently undergoing treatment at the Oklahoma University's Children's Hospital as well as at the Memorial Sloan Kettering's Cancer Center. Nolan's cancer is stable, it has not metastisized, and he has not had to receive any chemotherapy, but questions still remain about how Nolan will undergo his future treatment. 

Laura Devita's daughter Ivy developed a back and blue eye for no apparent reason in August of 2023 when she was 2 years old and that led to her diagnosis of Stage 4 High Risk Neuroblastoma. Ivy still faces an uncertain future but has one of the best hospitals in the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in charge of her care. Currently she is battling with a tumor which was recently found near her jaw and lymph nodes in which many doctors are looking at. Laura and her family moved to South Carolina 8 months ago but still need to travel to New York for treatment. 

If you would like to get in touch with Laura to offer assistance in any way then you can contact her on Facebook, on Ivy's page which is TeamIvyStrong2026, or on her Go Fund Me Page which is  Gofund.me/7d8e1454 

In October of 2022 Zamara Jankowski, who was 10 months old, began to experience an odyssey that no child ever should have to go through. After being seen at 3 different hospitals, in which all of the doctors involved said that she was basically fine although perhaps suffering from some type of flu, Zamara was finally diagnosed with Neuroblastoma in late December of 2023, 14 months after her symptoms began to present themselves. Everything that could have gone wrong, did go wrong for Zamara and her mom Danielle, with the blame that should be carried focusing on the 3 hospitals that looked at her symptoms and did not act in proper fashion after seeing them.  After waiting 425 days, Zamara was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma and 28 days after that, she passed away on January 25th of 2024,

Loretta Brooks was diagnosed with a Head and Neck Cancer known as Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma when she was 13 years old in 1991, causing her to miss almost all of her 8th grade school year. Loretta recovered well from that form of cancer and now has dedicated her life to advocacy work for Pediatric Cancer, with a particular emphasis on the subject of survivorship, which is always a difficult issue for former Pediatric cancer patients as they move into young adulthood and then adulthood. 

Sophia Gerosa was 3 years old in April of 2025 when she was diagnosed with High Risk B Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. After receiving great care and treatment from her caregivers at Advent Health For Children in Orlando, Sophia has completed difficult months of treatment and is now in the Maintenance program which she will complete in August of 2027.