At first the signs were very subtle.
Malia Appleby, just 2 ½ years old, had been having stomach issues, was irritable and couldn’t sit still. Her pediatrician thought she might have a virus and explained her protruding tummy as “toddler belly.”
Then Malia’s symptoms became more serious.“She was dry heaving and vomiting,” says her mother Michelle. Her worried parents took Malia back to the pediatrician. When an abdominal exam produced a painful response, the doctor sent the family to the emergency department of Wolfson Children’s Hospital.
A CT scan at the hospital revealed that Malia had a mass on her kidney—a Wilms tumor.
“When I started hearing words like ‘tumor’ and ‘chemo’ I was stunned,” says Michelle. “Our lives changed in that moment.”
“Her Nemours doctors, surgeon Danielle Walsh, MD, and oncologist Paul Pitel, MD, were very upfront with us, so we knew what to expect” says her father Chad.
In a lengthy operation, Dr. Walsh removed Malia’s kidney and a grapefruit-sized Stage 3 malignant tumor. To ensure that Malia would remain cancer-free, she underwent five days of radiation at Baptist CancerCenter, followed by six months of chemotherapy at Nemours Children’s Clinic.
“When Malia lost all her hair, her grandmother made lots of cute caps for her to wear,” remembers Michelle.
Malia had her last chemotherapy session in May of 2008. “She continues to be followed by the oncologists at Nemours,” comments Michelle. “She’ll get a CT or ultrasound every three months for three years. We always have a lot of anxiety when it’s time for that test.”
Today, Malia is a happy five-year-old who loves her dolls and getting dressed up. She will tell you that she’s “special” because she only has one kidney.
“Nemours Children’s Clinic is a wonderful resource,” says Chad. “We feel good about being here. So much was thrown at us, but everyone helped us understand each step. Malia was a rock star—she was the one that brought us through.”