Young Nebraska girl diagnosed with cancer for a second time after beating the deadly disease in the past
LINCOLN, Nebraska – Combating cancer once is difficult enough. A adolescent from Nebraska is through her second fight with a unique type of the disease.
At the age of 12, Izabella Eckhardt was initially diagnosed with pineoblastoma. She believed she was in the clear years later, until her physicians discovered lumps in her spine this summer.
Izabella stated, “I didn’t even feel anything; we just walked in for a routine MRI examination.”
Izabella, now 18 years old, returned to hospital treatments and walls after a few weeks.
Izabella’s mother, Miki Eckhardt, stated that Izabella’s cancer is quite aggressive. In four days, the tumor in her brain grew from the size of a dime to that of a quarter. That is dividing more slowly than this. This is therefore frightening. Because there have been so few children before her, it’s a guessing game as to what might work.
Due to the rarity of pineoblastoma, Izabella stated that there was no protocol for her specific condition when she was initially diagnosed. In contrast, her instance paved the path for subsequent diagnoses.
“Many parents and individuals have used what I did to help their children who have been diagnosed since my diagnosis,” Izabella added. “Therefore, now that it’s back, many of them are panicking. They ask, “Okay, so what do you suggest we do?”
Brain cancer is the most lethal form of cancer in children. According to the Team Jack Foundation, a treatment for childhood brain cancer has not yet been developed. Their principal purpose is to fund research and medical care.
“We’re trying to make it so that when a child is diagnosed with a brain tumor, the treatment that they receive won’t kill them,” said Kylie Dockter, the executive director of the Children’s Brain Tumor Foundation. Typically, the treatment is so harsh that even if the child survives the tumor, they may not survive the treatment.
Since Team Jack’s inception a decade ago, around $9 million has been raised.
Dockter stated, “If we do not take additional action, nothing will change.” “Since December 2021, I believe we’ve tallied 10 Plus lost children, so there’s still a tremendous, major problem here, and there’s still a great deal of work to be done.”
And it’s all over for children like Izabella, who now courageously faces her new challenge: overcoming pineoblastoma once more.
Izabella stated, “I suppose what I enjoy doing now is killing cancer for the second time.”
Team Jack is hosting Miles for Team Jack and the 10th Annual Team Jack Radiothon this month alone.
