Six-year-old Colorado girl beats rare childhood brain stem cancer

Hadley, 6, a Frederick resident, is now cancer-free after defeating an extraordinarily rare and aggressive brainstem tumour, which was discovered a few months after her birth.

The child was successfully treated at the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Children's Hospital Colorado after the family was told they should not hold hope. The six-year-old is among the first known childhood brain stem cancer survivors.

Unimaginable odds

When Hadley McMahon was just a few months old, her family received news that would change their lives forever. The infant had been diagnosed with an extraordinarily rare and aggressive brain tumour located in the brainstem.

This was an uncommon condition, with only a handful of cases ever documented worldwide. For Children's Hospital Colorado, it was their second case of its kind to be treated. “Everything was against all odds,” Amber McMahon, the child’s mother, told CBS.The prognosis was grim. The location of the tumour made surgery challenging, and its aggressive nature left only a few established treatment options. The doctors informed Hadley’s family about the bleak outlook, with little hope for survival.

According to her mother, doctors were direct in their assessment. “You should hold no hope. This will beat her,” she recalled being told.“All the signs we had pointed to this being really, really, really grim. It’s something that there’s been maybe a handful of cases reported worldwide ever,” Dr Nathan Dahl, a physician at Children's Hospital Colorado who helped oversee Hadley’s care, stated.

Choosing hope over despair

Hadley’s parents decided to go forward with treatment, even though they were told the child was unlikely to survive infancy.

She underwent a brain biopsy and chemotherapy. With the help of advanced genetic sequencing, chemotherapy, and the expertise of a large medical team, the doctors were able to map a treatment approach tailored to Hadley. The turnaround was nothing short of remarkable.“At the two-year mark, they said, ‘We think we might have cured her.’ At the five-year mark, she rang the bell, and she’s cured,” her mother recalled.Today, at six years old, Hadley is thriving, enjoying a childhood most families take for granted. She loves going to school and playing sports and video games with her older brother. “To have her cured and start kindergarten and be a little girl and go on holidays, you know, it was a big shift. It’s amazing,” her mother added.Hadley’s case provides hope and a roadmap for families facing similar diagnoses. As her mother reflected, “The next family won’t be told not to have hope.

They’ll be told, ‘We might have an answer.’”When asked about her recovery and its potential impact on other children, Hadley expressed wisdom beyond her age: “I am happy, because they get to live the life that I do.”Now, Hadley is raising substantial funds for children battling similar cancers, transforming her personal struggle into a beacon of hope for others.