Queen of the Clinic

Anyone who has met Krysta in clinic knows that she is most definitely in charge when she steps into the exam room.  This incredible little girl won me over from the minute that I met her back in 2004 when she had been diagnosed with an optic glioma - a tumor infiltrating the nerves behind the eyes.  Because of the nature and location of her tumor she required a little over a year of weekly chemotherapy.  And while I am quite certain that Krysta’s mother is happy to no longer be coming in as frequently, I had grown quite fond of the routine that Krysta and I had developed.

Our clinic visits would invariably start out with my walking into the room with Krysta hiding behind the curtain or behind the exam table in an attempt to jump out and scare me away.  Once I had a chance to catch up with her mother about the past week’s events, Krysta would start to wonder where her friend and playmate Leslie was.  Leslie, you see, is one of the clinic professionals that are assigned to each child to make sure that they acclimate appropriately to being on treatment.  Over a very short period of time, Leslie had become one of her favorite people in clinic.  Krysta, being a quick study, realized that I would call Leslie, or her attending physician Susan, when I was done with my exam so that they could come and see her.  By the end of her chemotherapy, Krysta took great pleasure in dialing Leslie up on the speakerphone herself in order to let her know that  she was ready to play.

To get Krysta up on the exam table required my counting to 10 (or 15 or 20 - the number mysteriously getting higher as Krysta got older) and then hoisting her up to the ceiling before putting her down for her checkup.  It is a good thing for my back that she finished her treatment before she got too big to hoist!  Amazingly, after about six months of participating in her regular physical examinations, Krysta surprised me one day by taking the ophthalmoscope from my hand and performing on herself a perfect examination of her upper cranial nerves!  After a check of her heart, lungs, belly and port-a-cath, she would do her “funny walk” on her heels so that we could make sure that the chemotherapy was not affecting the nerves in her legs.  By the end of 10 minutes she was ready to head to the activities area and work on her latest masterpiece.

I am thrilled to say that Krysta has completed her treatment and has had a great response to chemotherapy - her vision, along with her wit and charm remain intact.  She will be starting kindergarten in the fall and is sure to impress her teachers as she has impressed me.

Krysta is winning her fight against cancer.  Your donation through the Pan-Mass Challenge will support pediatric neuro-oncology programs at the Jimmy Fund Clinic, directly helping in the care of children and adolescents with brain tumors.  Please click here to make a donation today to celebrate Krysta, her family and her bright future!