After doctors found a tumor and cyst in her brain, 13-year-old Emiliah Albanese discovered that channeling her love for drawing was a helpful way to relieve stress and express her feelings. When she learned her younger cousin would need heart surgery, Emiliah put her artistic skills to work by creating a personalized heart drawing. On […]
Radhika Poppy Ennis is an energetic 4-year-old who loves to laugh, play and dance. But until recently, she was unable to stand or walk on her own. When Leslie and Jeremy Ennis adopted Radhika from India last year, she had extensive burns on her lower body. She could not straighten or use her left knee […]
In honor of National Kawasaki Disease Awareness Day on January 26, we are sharing the story of Olivia, a 9-year-old who lives with the disease. Research at Seattle Children’s aims to improve life for children with this condition who are at risk for aneurysms. When Olivia Nelson was 3 years old, her parents noticed that […]
When Cassie Fannin and her husband arrived at her 19-week ultrasound, the newly married couple was excited to learn more about their child. However, the first-time parents’ joy quickly turned to uncertainty when the ultrasound showed their baby’s stomach in her chest due to a life-threatening condition. Fannin learned that her daughter, Summer, would be […]
During seventh-grade gym class, Ruth Garcia remembers a friend pointing out a black mole she had on her left knee. Ruth didn’t think much about it until two years ago, when she began to feel pain in her knee and noticed that the mole had grown and changed colors to gray and red. “That’s when […]
With the countdown to the New Year almost here, On the Pulse caught up with a few of the patients who inspired our readers with their stories throughout 2018. Below, they offer their hopes, dreams and goals for the year to come. A shoulder above his cancer, Miguel sets sights on giving back In 2018, […]
Carolina Castañeda and Jesus Farias were driving home from a family outing with Olivia, their newborn daughter, when they heard her making a strange noise. As first-time parents, they thought it might be normal. However, when Olivia continued making the sound, the couple began to worry. They stopped the car, took Olivia out of the […]
Although Katarina Anja, or “Katja,” De Groot was born with a rare heart defect called truncus arteriosus, the active toddler never let her condition stop her from running, playing and going to the park. However, when she was 2 years old, Katja began sleeping for most of the day and withdrawing from the activities she […]
Donna West remembers her daughter, Emma, being born with a mark on her face. Part of her right cheek was raised and dark purple, like a bruise. A dermatologist diagnosed the mark as a benign extravascular hemangioma, a term that is no longer used, and said not to be concerned. A hemangioma is a collection […]
Ezekiel, or “Zeke,” 7, and Isaiah, 5, had a life-threatening medical condition at birth. They were both adopted from China with anorectal malformations, which affect about 1 in every 5,000 babies. Babies born with these malformations have no opening at the end of the digestive tract where the anus normally is, requiring complex surgery. After […]
