April 9, 2018 is a day five-year-old Madison and her family will never forget. After being admitted to the Emergency Department because of pain in her right leg, doctors at Levine Children’s Hospital discovered Madison had a soft tissue tumor on her right femur. Further medical tests revealed that Madison had osteosarcoma – a form of cancer that is very rare among children.
During the next few months of her treatment regimen, which started with chemotherapy followed by surgery to remove a portion of her femur in July, Madison proved she had – and continues to have – a fighter’s spirit. Her walking improves every day and she is determined to gain her “freedom” to be a healthy, normal kid again.
Madison turned her experience into an opportunity to give back and help other kids and families at Levine Children’s Hospital. She created “Madison’s Hope Ropes” – making one-of-a-kind jewelry and keychains for patients and selling her merchandise to raise money for pediatric cancer. The “new normal” for Madison as she continues her treatment involves Hope Ropes, coloring, painting, dancing, and singing. “What I admire most about Madison is her passion for life,” says Laura, Madison’s mom. You can’t get this fighter down – she is an inspiration to us all.