Name: Ellen
Diagnosis: non-Hodgkin lymphoma
The mother of 3-year-old Ellen was plagued with worry over her daughter's swollen lymph nodes, even though doctors repeatedly told her it was nothing.
They insisted the bumps on Ellen's head and neck were caused by a simple infection. But after three months of takingantibiotics with no improvement, Ellen's primary care doctor examined the bump on her head and said, "It's not good. Idon't know what this is, but we need to get it off." The doctor sent them immediately to the local children's hospital, where the family was devastated to learn their little girl had non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The doctor referred Ellen to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
At St. Jude:
Ellen's mom remembered how terrified she and her husband were when they arrived to St. Jude. "We were at the securitygate, and you could see the devastation on our faces. The security guard put his hand on my husband's and said, 'You are in the right place.'"
Doctors immediately placed Ellen on a two-and-a-half-year protocol of chemotherapy. The treatment is tough, but Ellen has been brave.
Ellen's mom says there are two miracles at St. Jude: the cures the hospital provides and the beautiful people she's met during this experience with her daughter—people like the doctors and nurses who care for her daughter, as well as the volunteers and donors who give so generously to St. Jude.
Darlene, a nurse in the medicine room, knows how much Ellen hates shots—but also knows how much she loves the Wizard of Oz. So when Ellen gets her chemotherapy shots, they hold hands and repeat, "There's no place like home. There's no place like home. There's no place like home." Ellen's mom said these small acts of kindness mean the world to their family.
Ellen is responding well to treatment, and her prognosis is good. Ellen loves cooking with her dad and playing dress up. She also loves to sing, and she knows all the words to "The Star Spangled Banner" and "America the Beautiful."
May 2009
