Four Girls Reunite After They Beat Cancer Together at the Same Hospital: ‘It’s Amazing to See’

Three years ago, McKinley, Chloe, Ava and Lauren were all in treatment for cancer at a Florida hospital. The quartet relied on each other to get through the arduous process, and on Monday they reunited for a photo shoot as cancer survivors.

The girls, all between the ages of 4 and 5, take a photo each year in the lobby of Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida, but this is the first time they are all in remission.

Get push notifications with news, features and more.

+ Follow

Following
You’ll get the latest updates on this topic in your browser notifications.

“They were all on active treatment the first time we did this,” Ava’s mom, Alyssa Luciano, told FOX13 in St. Petersburg. ”It’s amazing to see how far they’ve come from being bald little babies.”

McKinley, Ava and Lauren all had acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and Chloe had a rare form of lung cancer. McKinley said they all bonded “because our blood was sick.”

The girls in 2016, while in active treatment
Courtesy Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital

The girls in 2016, while in active treatment
Courtesy Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital

Lauren’s mom, Shawna Glynn, added that the girls formed a camaraderie when they were at Johns Hopkins because of their bald heads.

“She’s 3 years old and doesn’t have any hair, but all of her friends in the hospital look the same way so it kind of gave her some normalcy,” Glynn said.

RELATED VIDEO: Mom Shares Powerful Photo of Nurse Shaving Toddler’s Hair After Cancer Diagnosis: ‘We Embraced It’

“It was just always a breath of fresh air to see a familiar face and to know that she wasn’t alone in this,” Karen Moore, McKinley’s mom, added.

The moms said that they also relied on each other to make it through treatment.

“Just having other moms to relate to has been phenomenal,” Moore said. “Just to have other people going through it at the same time as us.”

Chloe, McKinley, Lauren and Ava in 2018
Courtesy Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital

The girls in 2018, now cancer survivors
Courtesy Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital

Lauren was the last to complete treatment, with her final one on Sept. 10.

“We’re done,” Glynn said. “She just rang the bell to signify that she has completed her treatment … She’s going into kindergarten on Monday.”

“They have just come so far, all of them,” she said.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *