Among Katie Taylor's successes as a Certified Child Life Specialist over the past 15 years have been focusing on the parents of the children that are undergoing treatment for Pediatric Cancer, and empowering these parents to help get their children and adolescents ready for upcoming doctor's appointments, which can be a tricky proposition. Katie also established a Child Life Services program at a Newborn Intensive Care Unit with an astounding 80 beds to help these critically ill newborns. These accomplishments also go along with her being an Author, Public Speaker, and Podcast Host. Katie is an extremely busy and totally dedicated professional .

When Tony Suttles heard about 9 year old Haley Chandler being diagnosed with a form of Pediatric Cancer in 2020, he decided that he needed to do something to help this girl and their family. His solution was to start a Dirt Track Car Race and decided to call it FIGHT FOR A KID. His first race in 2024 attracted 80 cars on a track that normally had 30 cars race each weekend. By 2025, 106 cars entered and over $12,000 was raised in honor of kids like Haley who were going through their individual cancer battles. Tony and James Cumby, the father of 12 year old Brailynn Cumby who I spoke with on my Podcast on Christmas Day about her Ewings Sarcoma battle, will talk about this race and the expansion plans they have for it beginning in September when their next race is scheduled.  

The only symptom that 14 year old Adie Alonzo was showing beginning in the spring of 2024 was an enlarged lymph node on her left side that had not impacted Adie's health in any way. It was not until 7 months later that this swollen lymph node was diagnosed as Hodgkins Lymphoma. After undergoing difficult treatment at Kaiser Hospital in Fontana California, Adie achieved remission on May 29th of 2025 and is doing well as 2026 begins. Adie is now 16 years old. 

Ahmad Butler described the headache that he was dealing with as "Pain On The Brain" in February of 2015, a headache that was almost immediately checked out, and one day later Ahmad was undergoing Emergency Brain Surgery at St. Christoper's Hospital in Philadelphia. This surgery revealed that Ahmad was suffering from the Pediatric Brain Cancer Ependymoma. Ahmad lived for only 9 months after his diagnosis, passing away at 6 1/2 years old in November of 2015, and his Grandmother Latanya Morrison started the Ahmad Butler Foundation in 2020, a Foundation that she has been running with unyielding focus and passion.

Dr. Cristina Pozo- Kaderman is the Director of the Young Adult Program at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and just published her book COPING WITH CANCER IN EARLY ADULTHOOD, a book that talks about the many issues that young adults, beginning at age 19 have to go through. These issues have a wide variety of problems attached to them and Cristina writes about the many solutions for which this group of cancer fighters can choose from to help them live their best lives possible. 

When a "small pimple" that was on 11 year old Brailynn Cumby's back that seemed to be a simple cyst turned into Ewing's Sarcoma in October of 2024, her parents Raquel and James, not to mention Brailynn, were shocked. Brailynn went through her treatment which ended on September 9th of 2025 when she was able to Ring The Bell at Texas Children's Hospital and while in treatment, Brailynn managed to write a book entitled PETALS OF HOPE and also managed to design a Chemo Shirt which hopefully will be put to good use by other pediatric cancer patients. 

Caitlin White's son Grant was 2 years old when he complained of pain from his thumb in November of 2022. This pain was not taken seriously enough by his doctors, one of whom looked at Grant while he was lying on the floor and gasping for breath in the hospital waiting room and said that his "shift was almost over" and he would order him a prescription, which had been the supposed solution heard too many time before by Caitlin. Caitlin then demanded a change in doctors, receiving a new female doctor, and this led to Grant finally being diagnosed properly for Leukemia, and began his treatment almost immediately.

Chad Gordon radiated positivity when talking about his daughter Adley's successful battle with B Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia which began just before her 2nd birthday in  February of 2022, and ended 800 days later when she was able to Ring the Bell at Penn State's Hersey Children's Hospital. Chad talks about what Adley went through, and also how the THON event which is a very well known Dance Marathon at Penn State, and the Four Diamonds Childhood Cancer Organization did so much to help Adley and the Gordon Family.

I am always amazed and humbled when any parent can come on to my podcast to talk about the passing of their child from any form of pediatric cancer. This feeling was no more striking than in my conversation with Tim Finkel, who spoke so eloquently about losing his and Angela's youngest son Ryder just 54 days ago to  DIPG at the age of 9. This Pediatric Brain cancer still does not have any type of good news as far as a survival rate is concerned, which is the same story that DIPG parents and families have been hearing for over 60 years. 

Even though it made perfect sense that 2 year old Waylynn McCullough was experiencing the same cold like symptoms that her dad Kevin and her mom Logan had already been through, Waylynn was not as fortunate to say the least, as what she was experiencing was her lead up to her High Risk B Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia diagnosis which was given to her in January of 2024. Waylynn is now 4 1/2 years old and has been through a very difficult initial treatment plan which was followed by a very difficult Delayed Intensification Treatment plan. Waylynn is now feeling well and thankfully is leading the life for the most part as a very healthy 4 1/2 year old girl.