Today marks 19 years since my daughter Alex passed away. Every year, I find myself commenting that I don’t have something new to say. After all, the details of Alex and her life story hasn’t changed. This year in particular, with the release of the Barbie movie, I have been thinking of Alex and her love of Barbie. We spent hours together playing with Barbie dolls; Alex’s preferred doll was Stacie, Barbie’s little sister, so I often got to play the role of Barbie, the big sister. Stacie and Barbie got us through many long days at the hospital and too many days of Alex not feeling well... Read More
The Childhood Cancer Blog
Welcome to The Childhood Cancer Blog
from Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation!
For weeks, Lakelynn Markham complained about a “boo-boo” in her arm. The pain interrupted her sleep, but X-rays revealed nothing; her parents were stumped. The pediatrician suggested that 3-year-old Lakelynn was trying to avoid bedtime.
But then Lakelynn stopped using her arm.
Trusting their intuition, her parents took Lakelynn to an orthopedic specialist. This time the X-ray showed a tumor wrapped around the nerves of her right arm and shoulder.
The diagnosis: a rare form of sarcoma.
Sarcomas make up 15% of all childhood cancer diagnoses and arise from... Read More
Quincy was just 4 months old when he was diagnosed with juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML), a rare type of leukemia that comes with a poor prognosis.
Edie Gilger was diagnosed with neuroblastoma when she was just 6 months old. Nothing worked—chemotherapy, surgery and other treatments failed over and over again.
Edie Gilger was diagnosed with neuroblastoma when she was just 6 months old. Nothing worked—chemotherapy, surgery and other treatments failed over and over again.
Edie went through three relapses before the family found themselves at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
“My husband, Nick always tells people that without Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) and without the research you support, he would not have a family. And it’s true. My daughter Edie, me, my son Kinsey—none of us would be here if it weren’t for ALSF,” said Emily, Edie’s Mom. Emily was diagnosed... Read More