Rinoa is artistic and imaginative. She loves to draw, especially the creative “little critters” she invents.
In the summer of 2022, Rinoa was scheduled for an MRI due to headaches and other symptoms. The night before the scan, she developed double vision, and at that point, her mother, Kary, knew they would find something wrong in her daughter’s brain.
It was a cancerous brain tumor called medulloblastoma.
St. Jude patient Rinoa and her mom
Artwork by St. Jude patient Rinoa
Following surgery at the hospital near their home, Rinoa had posterior fossa syndrome, a condition that severely limited her functioning. As she recovered, she started drawing her “little critters” again, and that was hugely comforting to her mom. “It just made me know she was still there,” Kary said.
I love St. Jude, and I'm thankful for it.
- Kary, Rinoa's mom
When they were offered a referral to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, her parents didn’t hesitate. Not only did St. Jude relieve the financial burden of treatment, but St. Jude offered proton therapy, one of the most advanced and precise forms of radiation treatment today, as part of Rinoa’s treatment plan. She has also received chemotherapy.
Families, like Rinoa's, will never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food — so they can focus on helping their child live.
Meet more patients
-
Meet Abraham
After a CT scan revealed Abraham had a mass on his brain, identified as a cancerous brain tumor called a medulloblastoma, his family turned to St. Jude for help.
-
Meet Adalyn
Adalyn had stomachaches that came and went with episodes of severe pain. At the ER, doctors found a large mass above her kidney, stage-4 high-risk neuroblastoma.
-
Meet Aspen
Aspen was not yet two when diagnosed with neuroblastoma. She was treated in the Philippines but six months later, the cancer was spreading so she was referred to St. Jude.
-
Meet Avyan
Avyan carries himself with confidence and strength beyond his years. His manner has given fortitude to his family as they walk through an unimaginable reality.
-
Meet Kamryn
At 2 years old, Kamryn's bloodwork indicated he had a form of blood cancer called acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Doctors referred him to St. Jude where he would undergo more than 2 years of chemotherapy while growing to love activities like Music Therapy.