Meet Jade, our 2023 Champion!
Written by Jade’s Parents
On February 10, 2020 – our baby girl, Jade, at the age of 4 ½ was diagnosed with Stage 4 Unfavorable Wilms Tumor. Her tumor was previously diagnosed (for 3 months) as a UTI, before it showed itself outside of her body one night while she was changing into her pajamas.
Prior to the diagnosis, Jade was a perfectly healthy, joyful and thriving little girl.
Jade’s right kidney was completely taken over by the tumor. She had a large clot in her Vena Cava that made its way within inches of her heart. In addition, she also had several spots on her lungs.
Jade endured 30 cycles of chemotherapy, a 10.5 hour long resection surgery/repair followed by a 3 night stay in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) and 8 radiation treatments.
We lost count of how many blood transfusions she needed, they saved her life through treatment. She had many hospital stays and delays of treatment due to her body recovering slowly.
After all that, she was declared Cancer Free on June 3, 2021, and officially rang the bell!
Throughout our cancer journey, Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital was a saving grace. Having our three older children and work, we are so grateful that we could stay local for all of Jade’s treatment.
We continue to go to Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital every 2 weeks for phlebotomy (blood draws) because Jade has a very scary amount of extra iron in her blood due to all the transfusions she needed during her treatment. She also has scans done each quarter.
Jade is now 7 years old and she is in 2nd grade. She is thriving in school and making up for lost time with her friends. She is a social butterfly and loves to be the center of attention!
Thank you to the Graczyk family for sharing Jade with us this year!
