Visits with Avery were always, and continue to be, a joy.  Avery came to the Stop & Shop Brain Tumor Program at the Jimmy Fund Clinic in November of 2004.  At just under a year of age, her parents and her pediatrician had noticed some unusual eye movements.  Ultimately Avery was found to have an optic glioma - a brain tumor that invades the nerve pathways that supply the eyes.  Amazingly, Avery’s vision appeared to be completely unaffected.  Because the tumor was not accessible by surgery, she required chemotherapy for her treatment.  Avery’s parents allowed us to enroll her in a national clinical trial designed to help identify the best regimen to treat her type of cancer.  After nearly a year of treatment we were very happy to find that Avery’s tumor shrank significantly.  Her vision remained intact and today she is growing, thriving and, as always, a joy to be around. 

For the past year, there has been no sweeter music to my ears then hearing Avery’s voice in the hallway as she walks to the exam room, and being able to watch her grow as a charming, inquisitive and intelligent little girl has been an absolute privilege.  Moreover, working together with Avery’s parents has been a stellar example of what can be achieved when physicians and nurses partner with families in order to provide the best possible care for a child.  As much as I would love to be able to take even partial credit for Avery’s success, the truth is that her parents were the ones who gave her the majority of herchemotherapy medications at home, convincing her to take unpleasant-tasting medications on a rigid schedule.  Her parents, like all of the parents of our patients, were our eyes and ears for any side-effects or symptoms, and the first-responders for any problems.  One day, when Avery is old enough to hear about her fight against cancer, I hope to be able to tell her about her parent’s remarkable accomplishment in helping to save her sight.