Possibilities - Children's Hospital Central California

Strawberry Shortcake and SamanthaManriquez are a lot alike, both like pink,both have an adorable character and bothhave a pet cat, but the pretty in pink patientwould soon find out that she had onemajor difference.“She was a healthy little girl in 2003 when she got acold, it became strep throat and she had a hard timebreathing,” says her mother, DeAnna Manriquez.The 3-year old also had aches in her bones andcomplained that her legs bothered her. ”One week shewould be fine and the next she would be really sick,”recalls Samantha’s father, Sonny Manriquez.She had difficulty swallowing that ended in a tripto her pediatrician. The doctor checked her throat– Samantha’s tonsils looked like blue cheese. It was abad case of strep throat.result of a larger problem. Children’s HospitalHematologist and Oncologist Robert Mignacca,M.D., diagnosed Samantha with Acute LymphocyticLeukemia, or ALL. It’s the most common type ofchildhood cancer, accounting for nearly 75 percentof all childhood leukemia cases. ALL is cancer of theblood and develops in the bone marrow. This form ofthe disease affects the white blood cells causing them tooverproduce malignant and immature cells, crowdingout other blood cells in the bone marrow. It spreads tothe bloodstream and other vital organs quickly, and isdeadly if not treated.“I just thought to myself, be as positive as possible toget her through this,” says Sonny.Treatment for Samantha included antibiotics forthe infection in her lymph nodes, followed bychemotherapy at the Craycroft Cancer Center atChildren’s Hospital. The Center is a full member of thenational Children’s Oncology Group (COG), whichPhoto SponsorA Good PrognosisThe Players: Doctors Vonda Crouse, Cris Johnson, Robert Mignacca and The Craycroft CancerCenter at Children’sThe doctor prescribed medicine but her condition didn’timprove. A second visit to the pediatrician revealed theimmediate need for hospitalization.At Children’s Hospital Central California, she had aseries of tests, including CAT scans, MRI’s and bloodwork to check for cancer. Meanwhile the young patientwas not herself, completely out of it.It was a shock to the Manriquez family that theinfection they worried about turned out to be theutilizes the latest treatment and research protocolsavailable for treating childhood cancer.“They treated us like family, they were right therewith us,” says Dad. “From doctors, to nurses, even thecafeteria staff, they’re really good people.”After the intense and successful treatment, Samanthastill sees Oncology doctors Vonda Crouse andCris Johnson at Children’s for chemotherapy andmonitoring.The 8-year-old is back to talking on the phone, dressingup and listening to music at the family’s home inMadera. She receives ample support, not only fromher mother and father, but also from her 3-year-oldsister, who adores her and emulates everything she does,including eating her favorite food, white rice.Samantha has a lot of patience with her sister, whichwill help her when she grows up.“I want to be a teacher,” she says.Sponsored byJim and MariePardiniThanks to prompt medical attention, aggressive therapyand continuous follow-up care, Samantha’s prognosis isgood. “Doctors have high hopes that she is going to beable to live a long, healthy life,” says Mom.