On July 15, 2021 Nicole was diagnosed with an extremely rare cancer diagnosis – Pleuropulmonary blastoma (Type III). it took a long time to diagnose her.
In March 2021, she got sick and had symptoms of a cold, but after 3 weeks of unsuccessful treatment, on March 29 she was admitted to intensive care unit in a serious condition, with a diagnosis of bacterial pneumonia. On April 23, she was finally discharged from the hospital. But on May 5, as she was brought in for a planned X-ray control to the hospital, she was again sent to intensive care unit. For a long time, doctors could not diagnose and understand what was happening to Nicole.
On May 11, after receiving the CT scan results, Nicole’s parents learned that in less than a month a giant tumor (138x84x156 mm) had grown in her left lung (the scan as of April 13th did not show any signs of tumor).
On May 20, the tumor was completely removed from the pleural cavity of Nicole’s left lung during successful radical surgery at the Cancer Institute in Kiyv. The surgery was the last chance to safe her life. The tumor occupied Nicole’s entire chest and was 25 cm in length. Nicole breathed with only one lung for about a month.
Nicole’s first block of chemotherapy started a month after surgery at the insistence of the doctors, without waiting for the immunohistochemical results and without an exact diagnosis. Soon after Nicole was diagnosed with a terrifying disease: Pleuropulmonary blastoma (Type III).
Pleuropulmonary blastoma is an extremely rare cancer. In total, only 350 confirmed cases of this rare disease were registered around the world by 2017, by the International Register of Pleuropulmonary Blastoma based in Minnesota, USA.
It is very difficult to find cancer specialists around the world who had encountered patients with this diagnosis. Luckily, Nicole’s parents found the Sant Joan de Deu Hospital in Spain, which specializes in rare childhood cancers and the most difficult patients. This medical institution has a successful track record of treating Nicole’s disease. They had experience with a few patients diagnosed with pleuropulmonary blastoma and all of them were successfully treated.
However, treatment in a foreign country comes at a high cost, and Nicole’s family needs financial support to pay for therapy. Nicole had already started treatment based on a partial deposit, but her family will appreciate any help to make sure she completes her therapy.