Her Treatment Changed. Her Fight Isn’t Over.
For much of her childhood, life has revolved around something no child should have to face: high-risk neuroblastoma.
So much of her childhood has been spent waiting — for test results, for the next treatment, for the day she can finally go home and feel well enough to play. Through it all, Natalie has held on to a simple wish: to go back to school, laugh with her friends, and have more days when cancer isn't the center of her life.
For a while, that wish began to feel within reach. Her family believed the treatment was helping, and they allowed themselves to imagine what life after cancer might look like. But then came the news they had feared: her treatment wasn't working as well as her doctors had hoped.
When her treatment was no longer working, her medical team had to change their approach. Now, the goal is to bring her cancer into remission again — and help her reach the next stage of treatment.
That next stage may include a medication called DFMO. For Natalie, her medical team's plan is to first get the disease back under control so she can move forward.
Having already endured so much treatment does not mean she no longer needs help. Her care continues. So do the appointments, the tests, and the uncertainty her family lives with.
Her wish is simple: to get better and have the chance to be a kid again.
