Last year, as my little girl was transitioning to adulthood, she experienced headaches so painful that we raced to the hospital fearing meningitis. The doctors at Dell Children’s quickly ruled out that risk, but it took two months to pinpoint Ariana’s condition, a normally benign disease that was attacking her central nervous system called juvenile xanthogranuloma.
Today, at 17, Ariana has completed her second round of chemotherapy at Children’s Blood and Cancer Center of Dell Children’s. Though hospitalized several times in the past year, most of her care is outpatient at the Blood and Cancer Center. She also takes 30 pills a day, including anti-seizure medication and steroids. Our family remains hopeful that she’ll be cured.