Junaisy
This is the story of Junaisy:
Junaisy was just 4 years old when her family’s world was turned upside down. It all started with what seemed like an ordinary fever, the kind most parents have seen a hundred times before. But this time, something was different. "She started with a fever, like a cold," recalls her mother, Glenda. The pediatrician assured them it was just a reaction to a recent vaccine, nothing to worry about - but Glenda’s instincts told her otherwise.
Every day, little Junaisy seemed to get worse. Her energy drained, and her body began to show signs that something was terribly wrong. "She later started to be unable to go to the bathroom. Her stomach was inflated, purple, and she would scream in pain," Glenda remembered with a shudder. Despite repeated visits to the pediatrician, doctors insisted it was just constipation. Still, Glenda knew in her heart that something more serious was happening.
After repeated visits to their provider, Glenda called her husband, asking him to come to the pediatrician’s office with her, hoping that together, they could push for answers. It was only after they insisted on an ultrasound that the truth began to unravel. The doctors called them with grim news: they had found abnormal shadows, which turned out to be tumors. That moment marked the beginning of a journey no parent is ever prepared to take. "We took her to the hospital, and that’s when we learned that the tumors were cancerous," Glenda says, her voice heavy with the weight of that memory.
Junaisy was diagnosed with stage four metastatic Ewing Sarcoma, a rare and aggressive cancer. "I was mute. I was paralyzed," Glenda shared. "I thought of her possible death. The doctor told me that only a miracle could save her."
Despite the devastating prognosis, Junaisy fought with everything she had. Over the next two years, she endured 17 rounds of chemotherapy and 12 weeks of radiation. "Every day, she looked worse," Glenda recalls. "They told us we should kiss her, hug her, and live one day at a time." But Junaisy’s spirit refused to be crushed. After countless surgeries and even a bone marrow transplant, she finally received a sliver of hope: while the tumor couldn’t be removed, it had been burned away by the treatments. Junaisy was in remission.
Now, nine years later, Junaisy is a survivor, but the battle isn’t over. The secondary effects of the treatment have left her immune system weakened, and any change in the weather brings the risk of fever and illness. "I live with the fear that she will get sick again," Glenda confesses, a fear intensified by the cancer that seems to haunt their family. Her grandmother battled stomach cancer, her aunt died of leukemia, and now her grandfather is fighting skin cancer. At 82, he’s being cared for by none other than Junaisy herself, who helps him with tenderness and strength beyond her years.
During the darkest days of Junaisy’s treatment, Glenda found solace in the support of Candlelighters. "Jackie came to the hospital with a bag full of things we could use during our stays," Glenda remembers. "It had crayons, books, toy nurse supplies so we could play. I still have that bag." The emotional support provided by Candlelighters was a lifeline for Glenda and Junaisy. "I think that without your support, we wouldn’t be here," Glenda says. "Even to this day, we get help. They have never left us alone."
When Junaisy completed her treatment, the first thing she wanted to do was swim. “I remember I asked the doctor if she could swim because her favorite princess is the Little Mermaid,” recalled Glenda, “She was determined to learn, in one afternoon, I taught her how to swim! She still enjoys swimming!”
Her wish to go to Disneyworld through Make-A-Wish was also granted, and with her port still in place, she was able to visit her Princess Ariel, who she admires for their similar love for the water. Even today, swimming remains one of her greatest joys, a symbol of the freedom and strength she has fought so hard to reclaim.
Looking back, Glenda has one piece of advice for other families facing the terrifying journey of childhood cancer: "Stay strong with God. Even if the diagnosis does not give you hope, pray, and God can give you a miracle."
