Children Archives - CURE Childhood Cancer

Drawing Her Own Path

Art, Humor, and Resilience in Alex’s Hodgkin Lymphoma Journey

Senior year is supposed to be about Friday night football, band practice, and time with friends. For 17-year-old Alex Landreau, a senior at West Forsyth High School, this year has included all of that. It has also included cancer.

Alex is an artist. She draws constantly, and she’s very good at it. She’s also a member of the West Forsyth marching band, where she’s found a second home. She’s quiet and gentle, but the people closest to her will tell you she’s tougher than she looks – and funnier, too. Her quick wit has gotten her family through some of the hardest days of the past year.

The Unexpected Turn

It started in January, during an ice storm, with what looked like a winter bug that wouldn’t go away. Alex’s mom, Carolyn, noticed a lump in her neck that kept changing, along with a slight wheeze everyone assumed was left over from the flu. An ultrasound, a CT scan, and a trip to the ER followed in quick succession, and the scans showed tumors in her lungs. A PET scan confirmed the diagnosis: nodular lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma (NLPHL), a rare cancer of the lymph nodes and immune system known for its unusually large “popcorn” cells. By February, the family was reading through a two-page list of places the cancer had reached, from her head to her pelvis.

Treatment

Alex started treatment on March 9. Over the next several months, she went through six cycles of chemotherapy, with infusion days that ran seven and a half hours at the Aflac Cancer & Blood Disorders Center at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. The side effects were hard. Her heart rate spiked. She was exhausted all the time. Her hair fell out, and she eventually shaved her head. And for an artist, one side effect was especially cruel: the chemo left her fingertips numb and shaky, and for months she couldn’t hold a pencil steady enough to draw.

Her family was with her the whole way. Her 13-year-old brother, Carson, shaved his head, too. Local schools made room for the family’s new reality, and the drama program her dad, James, leads passed the hat and donated to CURE Childhood Cancer in her honor. Alex met all of it honestly and head-on. She didn’t spend much time on “why me,” and she found the good parts wherever she could.

A New Season

The chemo worked. Alex finished treatment in June and is easing back into senior year. She’s attending school part-time and managing her own schedule. She’s back in marching band, and she walked out onto the field for Senior Night. This fall, the numbness in her hands finally started to fade, and she’s drawing again – slowly, but she’s drawing. Her hair is coming back in soft curls, and in December she’ll ring the bell to mark the end of treatment.

Still Laughing

Through all of it, Alex never lost her sense of humor. When her hair started growing back in a short, textured crop, she saw the joke right away: this Halloween, she’s going as Eleven from Stranger Things. A girl with a buzz cut who’s a lot stronger than anyone expects? It fits.

Alex, we’re so proud of you – your art, your humor, and the way you’ve handled this year. We can’t wait to see what you do next.

Join Us in Honoring Alex and Her Family

CURE invites you to celebrate Alex and her family in person at the 7th Annual Ring the Bell Benefit on November 4 at Glover Park Brewery in Marietta. It’s an evening to honor families like the Landreaus and to raise support for children and families going through cancer treatment right now.

Join us at the Ring the Bell Benefit

Mark Myers In Children, Family & Patient Support, Survivorship

Healing Luna’s Body & Heart

On November 15, 2022, five-year-old Luna’s world changed in an instant. After weeks of one illness after another, including COVID, the flu, strep throat, she spiked a fever of nearly 105 degrees and was rushed to the emergency room. The blood work came back strange. Then a physician sat her parents down and said the word no family is ready to hear: leukemia. Luna was diagnosed with high-risk leukemia.

She didn’t speak for four days, which was completely out of character. The loud, joyful girl everyone knew went quiet, trying to make sense of a world that no longer made sense to anyone around her. Then a child life specialist sat down beside her with crayons, making Luna laugh for the first time since the diagnosis. It was the first crack of light in a very dark week.

What followed was two and a half years of chemo, allergic reactions, and painful shots that left her furious and afraid. Through it all, Luna found ways to smile and showed a resilience that amazed everyone around her.

But healing from cancer isn’t only about the body. Halfway through treatment, something else took root. Luna experienced an anger and a grief she didn’t have words for yet. In April 2024, with CURE’s support, her family found her a counselor who specialized in play therapy. It changed everything. For two years, Luna had sacrificed control. She had been told what to do, when, and how. In that small therapy room, for the first time, she got to choose what would happen. She picked the toys. She set the pace. And through play, she worked through everything treatment had taken from her.

In April 2025, Luna rang the bell.

Today she is almost nine. She loves being outside, singing, and dancing. She is imagination in motion. She’s heading into third grade, still learning how to be a kid among kids after years spent mostly surrounded by adults. Thanks to counseling and play therapy, Luna’s family didn’t just survive her cancer; they are all learning how to live after it. That gift, the space to heal her heart as well as her body, is worth more than gold.

Mark Myers In Children, Family & Patient Support, Volunteer Spotlight

Small Gestures, Giant Impact

In Zeke’s bright eyes, the world remains full of wonder despite the battle he’s been fighting for more than a year. As his family celebrated Christmas, his mother, Sarah, noticed something concerning in the holiday photos – a yellowish tint to her son’s skin. After weeks of on-and-off illnesses that doctors judged to be seasonal bugs, her maternal instinct screamed that something wasn’t right.

“I never felt like I had a lot of mother’s intuition,” Sarah recalled. “But something didn’t feel right. So I kept pushing for more tests until we found out.”

That persistence – that refusal to give up – saved her son’s life.

When the blood test finally revealed leukemia, Sarah’s world collapsed into a single devastating heartbeat. The diagnosis of leukemia launched the family into the disorienting world of childhood cancer – weekly hospital visits, chemotherapy, and medical terminology no parent should ever have to learn. Through it all, three-year-old Zeke remained resilient, his spirit and imagination soaring even when his energy couldn’t keep pace.

But hospital days brought challenges that tested both mother and son. The accessing of his port became a source of overwhelming anxiety for Zeke.

“There is nothing – nothing – like the pain of having to hold down your child through a procedure,” Sarah shared. “For so long, it took everything in me not to cry when we got Zeke’s port accessed. He would scream and cry and sometimes get so upset that he would throw up.”

Then came an unexpected turning point in the form of a simple little bag.
Zeke’s nurses began telling him about a special reward waiting after his port accessing – a trip to the “Secret Snack Closet” where CURE Childhood Cancer provided snack bags for brave children like him. What started as a simple distraction turned into something magical.

“Eventually, Zeke started getting more excited about going to the secret snack closet than he felt fear about getting accessed,” Sarah explained. “It became a bit easier and easier to distract him, and I found I became less anxious about our hospital visits.”

Now in maintenance treatment since September 2024, Zeke’s blond hair is starting to return, complete with a cowlick he proudly calls his “ponytail.” Zeke continues to inspire those around him with his resilience. His daily declaration that he wants to be “strong like dad” reveals the strong bond with his father, only deepened through this journey.

“As silly as it sounds,” Sarah reflects, “those snack bags have been instrumental in our journey through childhood cancer and have come to represent hope for us. We are incredibly thankful for all the people who donate them.”

Zeke’s story teaches a profound lesson – how something that seems so small can make a big difference. How even the smallest gestures of kindness can transform a child’s darkest moments. And how sometimes courage can come packaged in chocolate chip cookies and cheese crackers. If you would like to learn about how you or your organization can make snack bags to encourage kids like Zeke, visit our volunteer page.

Mark Myers In Children, CURE Childhood Cancer, Family & Patient Support

Forever in Our Hearts

Jonathan’s bright smile could light up any room. An energetic, happy child who loved playing soccer and building Legos, he was just three years old when his world changed forever. In August 2016, after complaining about headaches and then throwing himself on the floor in pain, Jonathan’s parents knew something was terribly wrong. Their instincts led to a devastating discovery – a mass the size of a golf ball on Jonathan’s cerebellum, a rare high-grade brain tumor.

The family’s journey began with a nine-hour surgery that his mother describes as “gut-wrenching” – the first of many difficult days ahead. During the following year of treatment, Jonathan seemed to improve, offering a glimmer of hope. But in December 2017, the tumor returned, twice its original size. Jonathan maintained his sweet nature throughout his treatment, even while missing the cherished family tradition of playing soccer.

When Jonathan passed away in October 2020 at just seven years old, the void seemed impossible to fill. They endured the unimaginable pain of watching Jonathan’s friends reach milestones he never would.

“It’s a bittersweet feeling,” his mother, Rosa, shared. “On one hand, I love seeing them grow up and do things a child should do. But it also reminds me that Jonathan will never get to accomplish those milestones.”

But in their darkest moments, CURE Childhood Cancer remained by their side, changing from an organization that supported them during treatment to a lifeline in grief. At CURE’s Hope & Healing retreat, Jonathan’s parents found a community that understood their trauma.

“At first, I wasn’t sure about talking about my pain,” Rosa admitted. “But the others there knew the same hurt. That helped me to open up. We bereaved parents can talk, relate, and have nobody judge us.”

CURE’s Healing Hearts events also became a source of comfort and strength for Rosa. Every quarter, mothers come together to share, connect, and support each other after the loss of a child. Their bonds extend beyond scheduled gatherings, with messages of hope and support when someone is struggling.

“Those are my ladies,” Rosa said of the other mothers who’ve lost children to cancer. “We meet somewhere quiet so we can talk and have a meal or do an art project. It doesn’t matter what we do; it’s the company.”

Even as time passes, CURE ensures families know they aren’t forgotten. Their child’s memory lives on, and they remain a part of the CURE family forever. Through bereavement events, CURE creates spaces where families can honor their children while finding strength in community.

Jonathan’s family takes comfort in knowing they are never alone on their journey through grief. In this way, Jonathan’s legacy of courage continues – not only in his family’s hearts, but also in the compassionate community that continues to walk alongside them day after day.

Mark Myers In Children, Precision Medicine, Research

Maeve the Brave

At just 13 months old, Maeve’s budding life took an unexpected turn. What her mother, Nicole, initially thought was a little potbelly from transitioning to solid foods turned out to be something far more serious. During a check of Maeve’s stomach, doctors discovered a tumor.

The diagnosis of neuroblastoma came quickly, a blessing that improved Maeve’s chances of survival. But by her third round of chemotherapy, Maeve’s little body was struggling. She became dehydrated and emaciated, with dangerously high blood pressure and severe digestive challenges. Then came the devastating news: the tumor was growing despite everything they’d thrown at it.

Maeve had surgery to remove 90% of the tumor and one kidney, but instead of improvement, Maeve’s condition spiraled downward. When her remaining kidney shut down, she began dialysis. For 45 days, her cancer battle took a backseat as she fought for her life in the pediatric intensive care unit. She spent 23 of those days on a ventilator, unable to eat, and sustained only by intravenous nutrition.

Nicole’s description cuts straight to the heart: “She was gaunt and had a big belly – she looked like a starving Victorian child. We were losing our child.”

Hope flickered when her remaining kidney began to work, and she was taken off the ventilator. But the reprieve only meant one thing – it was time to resume her cancer fight. Since standard treatment had failed, she was enrolled in CURE’s Precision Medicine Program, where genetic sequencing revealed something that would change everything. Maeve had a V600E BRAF mutation, typically found in brain tumors, not neuroblastoma.

This rare genetic insight became the key to Maeve’s survival. She began a specialized protocol targeted precisely at her unique mutation. The results were nothing short of miraculous.

“She immediately responded to the medication,” her mother recalled. “Within a week, her digestive issues improved. She started eating again and gained weight. Her cheeks started filling out.”

After three months, her vital signs stabilized. Her blood work normalized. Maeve started eating 1,000 calories daily – a tremendous achievement for a child who had been unable to eat at all.

And there was another precious milestone: walking. Cancer had struck just as Maeve was first trying to walk, leaving her too weak to continue. Then a broken femur further delayed her progress. But at 29 months, Maeve finally took her first steps. These steps were symbolic of her journey from the brink of death to a life filled with hope and possibility.

Today, Maeve is a happy three-year-old little girl who loves being outside and digging her fingers in the dirt. While areas of concern remain and her journey continues, her most recent scans showed no new growth.

“Finding this mutation quite literally saved her life,” her mother said. “We are so grateful for the scientific discoveries that make genetic testing possible, and for CURE’s investment in it.”

Through the Precision Medicine Program that identified Maeve’s unique genetic profile, a child once given little hope now has a future as bright as her brave spirit.

Take a minute to watch Maeve the Brave’s story.

Mark Myers In Childhood Cancer, Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, Children, Uncategorized

Rhea is Back on the Field

Last year, Rhealynn “Rhea” Mills stood in front of 600 guests at the Believe Ball and shared her story. What the room didn’t know that night was that she’d relapsed just one week earlier. Despite this, she showed up anyway, strong and steady, and left an impression none of us has forgotten.

Watch the video we shared that night before she spoke. Knowing what she was carrying that night makes it even more powerful.

A Journey That Began in 2022

Rhea’s story started in October 2022, when she was diagnosed with metastatic osteosarcoma, an aggressive form of bone cancer. Her treatment included the amputation of her right leg, along with multiple surgeries after the cancer spread to her lungs. It’s the kind of diagnosis that reshapes a family overnight, and for the Mills family of Thomasville, Georgia, it did exactly that.

There were dark moments along the way. Rhea has shared that there was a point she thought she was done, and that she might not get to play the sport she loved again. But something in her kept pushing back against that fear, and she decided she wanted to try again.

Where She Is Now

This spring brought a scare: abnormal lab results sent the family back to Texas early, and doctors worried about a possible secondary cancer. After weeks of testing, the news was better than they’d hoped. There is no secondary cancer, and the large tumor in Rhea’s lung appeared to be completely dead. The abnormal labs, it turned out, were caused by low copper levels.

Today, her mother, Revana, reports there’s no active cancer detected, though a mass remains in the left upper lobe of her lung that the family hopes will continue shrinking on its own. Rhea takes daily medication and continues physical therapy to rebuild shoulder strength and manage lingering back pain.

And through all of it, Rhea is back on the softball field. Watch this news feature about Rhea’s return to the mound. You’ll be inspired!

READ THE ARTICLE

Her mother calls watching that moment one of the most emotional parts of their entire journey. She wondered for so long whether they’d ever get back to the bleachers. Rhea’s own goals are refreshingly simple: get stronger, hit better, pitch better, and maybe one day play ball in college.

A Family That Keeps Choosing Hope

More than 10,000 people now follow Rhea’s story online, where her family shares both the hard days and the joyful ones: fishing trips, horseback riding, golf, and laughter. They’ve recently launched a YouTube channel to keep documenting those moments, hoping their honesty helps other families facing hard days keep fighting.

Rhea has said she loves the idea of inspiring others to keep working. If her story does that for even one more family walking a similar road, it will be doing exactly what she hoped.

Mark Myers In Children, Precision Medicine

How Precision Medicine Gave Daniel Back His Childhood

Happy young boy outdoors in a wooded area, smiling and enjoying nature.

When Daniel was diagnosed with a brain tumor near his brain stem, he was about to turn two. His symptoms started small, a head tilt so slight that only his doctor caught it. Then, at daycare, he suffered a seizure-like episode where he couldn’t focus on anyone in the room. That was the moment everything changed.

The diagnosis was a brain tumor sitting in one of the most difficult locations possible. The tumor lay right next to the brain stem, where surgeons couldn’t safely remove it. Doctors tried to remove as much as possible, but it grew back to the same size within three months. A second surgery proved fruitless, as well. Daniel’s family made the difficult decision to start a two-year chemotherapy regimen, which he completed a year and a half ago.

This is where CURE’s funding of precision medicine changed the course of Daniel’s story. Genetic testing of his tumor answered two critical questions: it confirmed the tumor wasn’t a type prone to spreading through the spinal cord, and it revealed a mutation in the BRAF gene.

That discovery opened the door to a clinical trial of a drug originally approved a decade ago for adult melanoma patients with the same mutation. It has since become a turning point in pediatric treatment, offering new options for kids like Daniel. Out of all the options, it was the one his family and doctors believed would work best with the least impact on his daily life. They were right. Daniel has thrived on the trial.

“He is doing so well that you’d never guess he is undergoing any type of treatment,” shared his mother, Anna.

Daniel’s tumor will always be part of his life. It can’t be removed, and the goal now is to keep it dormant for good. But his childhood hasn’t been defined by that fight. He’s eight, very active, and obsessed with baseball. He loves to play the sport or watch just about any game on TV.

Precision medicine didn’t just give Daniel’s family a treatment plan. It gave them clarity in the middle of the scariest uncertainty imaginable, and it gave Daniel back his childhood.

As we head toward Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, Daniel’s story is exactly why CURE exists: to turn research into full childhoods like his.

Mark Myers In Children, CURE Childhood Cancer

The Front Seat

Jacob’s son, Caleb, had been complaining of back pain and tiring easily for about a week, which was unusual. Then came the night he dropped a piece of paper and couldn’t bend to pick it up. He cried out in pain. By the next morning, Caleb had spiked a fever of 104. Jacob and his wife, Katie, immediately took him to the hospital, thinking it could be a kidney infection. They soon learned it was something far worse.

“We were shocked,” Jacob said. “I knew something was wrong when several doctors filed into the room.”

Caleb had leukemia. What followed was two and a half weeks in the hospital with both parents present around the clock. Caleb underwent surgery and procedures to begin chemotherapy to fight his leukemia. He had complications from treatment that caused him to struggle to breathe at times. The family was finally discharged, and Caleb continues treatment on an outpatient basis for now. Through it all, Jacob hasn’t missed a single appointment, and he’s learned a lot about himself.

“In the South, it’s instilled that you have to be strong for your family,” he said. “You’re not supposed to be emotional. But Caleb and his brothers need to see their dad process emotions. They need to know it’s okay to be scared; that mommy and daddy are sad too, and that we can do hard things together with the help of God. They need to know that courage doesn’t always mean silence.”

The good news is that Caleb’s leukemia is a favorable-risk, highly treatable form, and it was discovered early. He is responding to treatment and is in the interim maintenance phase of his initial treatment. Caleb’s energy has returned and he is back to his playful self, which brings a great deal of comfort. As his immune system has been stronger, he’s even been able to take swimming lessons recently.

Caleb is part of a very close-knit family, and Jacob isn’t the only man involved in his care. His grandfather, Tim Adams, has spent much of his adult life fighting childhood cancer, just not this close.

A high school football and track coach for his entire career, Tim created Coaches for Curing Cancer in 2015 to support CURE. The organization has raised more than $75,000 since it started. His motivation was the memory of his nephew, Penn Mobley, who died of a central nervous system tumor.

“We were a little more in the back seat during Penn’s treatment,” Tim said. “I never thought we would move to the front seat.”

Now he and his wife, Anna, are fixtures at Caleb’s clinic days, steady presences in a world of waiting rooms, port accesses, and lumbar punctures. Tim watches his daughter navigate this. He watches Jacob hold Caleb’s hand through every difficult moment. And he finds himself face to face with something he cannot coach his way through.

“The hardest part for me is being absolutely powerless,” he said. “Caleb has taught me lessons about patience and taking life head-on. This has been humbling, but it has brought us all closer together in some ways, too.”

This Father’s Day, Jacob and Tim represent so many dads and granddads who have been forced to learn what it means to be in the front seat with their child. Sometimes, showing up is all that can be done; sitting in the waiting room, or holding a hand through a port access. It might not be what the world calls strength. But it is the kind of strength that matters most.

Mark Myers In Children

Puppies for Cameron

Cameron Hudson was an active boy who played basketball and excelled at karate. When he was eleven years old, he showed his parents a strange bump he found on his knee. After many doctors’ visits, he was diagnosed with a rare sarcoma – one of only 300 cases in the world.

During his treatment, Cameron found a very special source of comfort: Aries, a golden retriever therapy dog who showed up on the hardest days and somehow made them easier. Watching Aries trot through the halls, Cameron began dreaming of a dog of his own.

That dream arrived in the form of Lucky – a golden retriever gifted by generous friends who wanted to give Cameron something to love and plan for beyond the next round of chemo. From his hospital bed, Cameron threw himself into the role of dog owner the same way he approached everything: with focus, patience, and a motto he’d adopted as his own, “Slow and steady wins the race.” He watched puppy training videos for hours. He practiced commands. He was determined.

“That dog was so well-trained that she would sit in front of a bowl of food without moving until he told her it was okay,” recalled Cameron’s father, Michael. “Lucky gave him purpose.”

And then Cameron dreamed bigger. He wanted Lucky to one day have puppies that could go to help other children fighting cancer, just as Aries had helped him. It was the kind of idea only Cameron would have: in the middle of his own battle, thinking about how to make it easier for someone else.

Cameron passed away on June 28, 2023. But his parents, Katie and Michael, held onto his vision.

They found a wonderful golden retriever named Chester, and Lucky gave birth to ten healthy puppies in February. Each one found a home entirely by word of mouth, no advertising needed. Every dollar from the puppies’ sale is being donated to CURE, the organization that showed up for their family with meals, support, and community when they needed it most.

“I feel like Cameron handpicked the families,” Katie said. “And it is so special that he is still giving back. There were days in the hospital that I wouldn’t have eaten at all if it weren’t for CURE.”

One of the ten puppies is heading to a very special home. Chelsea Key from CURE’s Patient and Family Services team is adopting one of Lucky’s pups. She and her family hope to have her trained as a therapy dog when she gets a little older. The plan is for her to one day attend CURE events and visit patients, offering the same kind of comfort that Aries once gave Cameron.

Cameron never got to see it happen. But in a very real way, he made it happen. His spirit will carry on with each home that gets one of the puppies.

Lucky still lives with the Hudson family in Florida. And he reminds them of Cameron every single day.

Mark Myers In Children, Family & Patient Support, Uncategorized

I Am Her Strength

Five-year-old De’Meiah (Meme) was in kindergarten when her teacher noticed she wasn’t using her left arm. For her mom, Takia, that small observation set off a medical journey that changed their family forever. When doctors first suggested scoliosis, Takia’s instincts told her something more was going on. She pushed for answers, sought a second opinion, and finally got an MRI. During the scan, Meme had an allergic reaction to the sedation and stopped breathing. A second MRI showed a tumor at the top of Meme’s spine, pressing on the nerve and preventing her from using her arm.

Testing of the tumor revealed that it was not fast-growing, but its location on the spine made its removal impossible. Chemotherapy was the only path forward. Over the past three years, she has reacted well to treatment, but doesn’t like to have her port accessed.

If you spend a few minutes with Meme, you’ll learn she is a diva who loves the camera, dressing up, and the color pink. She’ll dance for you, or she’ll tell you she’s going to be a doctor, a police officer, or a teacher when she grows up. Chemo has made her more home-bound than before. But she’s filled the house with TikTok videos, joyful energy, and a spirit that makes everyone in her life cheer for her. She even worked hard to make the second-grade honor roll.

Behind every child who fights cancer, there is a parent fighting quietly, relentlessly, and sometimes alone. As a single mom, Takia spent the bulk of Meme’s treatment working full-time while getting her to appointments at least twice a week. She recently took a leave of absence so she could be fully present as Meme nears the finish line of her treatment.

Through it all, she has held herself together with intention. She doesn’t cry in front of Meme. She wants her daughter to feed off her strength, not her fear.

“I am her strength,” Takia shared. “I don’t cry when I’m around her. I cry when I’m by myself. But I don’t want her to worry, because she’s the one going through it.”

CURE has walked alongside them every step of the way. For a working single parent navigating treatment, having a team she could count on wasn’t just helpful, it was essential.

“God is good, he has held Meme and me close during this time,” Takia said. “And the CURE team has always been there for us. We felt loved and supported from the day we learned about the tumor.”

On May 14, Meme will ring the bell: a girl who lost the use of her arm and got it back, an honor roll student, and a diva with a bright future ahead. And she will ring it as the daughter of Takia, a mother who never stopped fighting for answers and has stayed strong when it was hardest.

This Mother’s Day, we celebrate them both.