St Jude patient Hazel
Hazel's story
Hazel loves ballet, rainbows, fairies and mermaids. But her biggest love these days is her baby sister, Eliza, whom she helps style by picking out adorable outfits, with hopes of playing dress-up together in the future.
“She wants to hold her sister every day,” her mom, Hannah said.
For Hannah, watching her two daughters together is a dream come true.
In 2022, when Hazel was 2, her parents noticed she was having balance issues. A visit to a local hospital in Kentucky revealed a brain tumor. Thirty-six hours later, Hazel had brain surgery. When the couple left Hazel in the pre-op room, they were overwhelmed with emotions.
St. Jude patient Hazel with her parents
St Jude patient Hazel with her mom
We didn’t know what would happen or who would be coming out. A few long hours later, we found out that it was still Hazel who came out as feisty as ever.
- St. Jude patient Hazel's dad
Doctors were able to remove the tumor, but Hazel was going to need further treatment for the malignant tumor called medulloblastoma. Hazel fit the criteria to participate in a clinical trial for infants and young children with medulloblastoma at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.
This unique study, called SJiMB21, aims to use the molecular classification of medulloblastoma to determine treatment intensity in infants and young children with the disease.
As part of the t St. Jude clinical trial, Hazel received chemotherapy and then proton beam radiation radiotherapy. Hazel returned home in September of 2023 and returns to St. Jude every three months for checkups.
Families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food — so they can focus on helping their child live.
Everybody at St. Jude was kind. People knew us and we knew them, and it was amazing that our needs were met on such a broad level. It wasn’t just medical care but making sure that we had what we needed to meet her needs.
- St. Jude patient Hazel's mom
St Jude patient Hazel with her dad
Help give more kids a chance to grow up
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