Parker Monhollon, an 8-year-old girl from Silver Lake, Kansas was diagnosed with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), a rare brain cancer, told the public about her condition on YouTube. Many people responded with love and sympathy towards her and gave their support.
"I just got done with MRI. They said I have a brain tumor," Monhollon said in the video. "And it's something that's on your brain. And it's called a tumor. And they get bigger and bigger. So you have to take these pills," she shared.
Fox News reports that Monhollon parents noticed something wrong with their girl just before last Christmas when Parker's eye looked like it was drifting toward her nose. It was then confirmed that it was a brain tumor through MRI.
The Silver Lake community and other neighboring towns are raising funds for Parker since the video was posted last Jan. 16.
Schools and youth clubs are giving donations, too. People know that Parker loves to dance. Dance studios and other dance teams likewise extend their support to the girl in the form of tribute videos.
Parker gives her gratitude to her supporters in videos that are posted on the Facebook page that is entitled "Parker Loves Life." Currently, she is undergoing radiation treatment at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
Wikipedia defines Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG) as a tumor that is located in the middle of the brain stem, which is the bottommost portion of the brain that connects the cerebrum with the spinal cord. The standard treatment of DIPG includes chemotherapy in infants and radiation therapy.
The radiation therapy is done for six weeks to few months. The treatment can kill some cancer cells, lessen pressure on the brain stem and shrink the tumor. About 75 to 85 percent shows positive results after radiation therapy.
