Meet Champion, Anna

Just days before her sixth birthday, Anna went to the emergency room with side pain, suspected to be appendicitis. CT scans revealed a softball-sized tumor, neuroblastoma. Her 15-month cancer treatment was intense: five rounds of chemotherapy, stem cell collection, two back-to-back bone marrow transplants, radiation, and five rounds of immunotherapy. The bone marrow transplant team became a constant source of care and comfort during her most difficult days, while the child and family life team brought joy and normalcy, inspiring Anna to one day become a child life specialist herself. Now on the road to recovery, Anna is thriving, surrounded by gratitude for the world-class care she received so close to home in Grand Rapids.