"She's extremely brave, she's extremely strong, and she's happy -- she's a bubbly little 4-year-old," Melanie Hunter explained this to the Today Show. Those words describe many young children, but, in this case, it is used to describe a little girl who survived breast cancer. Aleisha Hunter was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of two. Only 5% of women under forty are diagnosed with breast cancer. But now as a four-year-old she is a survivor.
My thoughts immediately go to the mother. Terror of what is happening and fear of the unknown must have continually been engraved in her thoughts. Melanie had to watch her daughter suffer; the little girl was stricken with pain, to the point of having trouble eating and sleeping. Then she had to watch as her daughter endured surgery and recovery.
While Aleisha was hospitalized she found comfort in her teddy bears, Bear and Ash, and, of course, her mother. Melanie had to provide support and console for her fearful daughter.
Now Melanie goes from hospital to hospital trying to raise awareness of breast cancer. One thing she continually tells parents is to “hug their children and tell them they love them” every moment they get.
