Gracie Ferluge

Gracie Ferluge, Age 10

​Two months after Gracie’s 5th birthday, she was diagnosed with Stage 4, High Risk Neuroblastoma. It was August of 2020. She had been ill for several months and receiving this diagnosis for our daughter was devastating. Having no knowledge of this rare childhood cancer, we set out to find out as much as we could and we were determined to find a cure. Gracie was diagnosed at Hackensack University Medical Center, and we quickly sought a 2nd opinion at St Jude’s Medical Center, and a 3rd opinion at MSK Kids.
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​All three programs were adamant that we had to start treatment as quickly as possible.  Her cancer had spread all over her body and we had to act fast. After meeting with Dr. Ted Gerstle and Dr. Stephen Roberts at MSK Kids, we felt hopeful we had found the right place for her treatment. They immediately started chemo and mapped out a clinical pathway for her cure. The induction phase of her treatment included 6 rounds of high dose chemo alongside 3 extensive surgeries to remove the tumors that had spread throughout her body. Following induction, she had another 5 rounds of chemo combined with immunotherapy, and 14 proton beam radiation treatments. Watching our daughter endure such pain and suffering over those 14 months of treatment was awful, and we were so grateful to finally receive clear scans!!

We are happy to report that Gracie has now completed in one of the most successful trials to date for high risk children, the Bivalent Vaccine Plus Beta-Glucan for High-Risk Neuroblastoma. This trial has demonstrated outstanding initial results in preventing relapse of high-risk patients. As of today, she has been in remission for 4 and a half years!! Every day that we get to have her healthy again is why we will forever be connected to cancer families. We know whole-heartedly what this battle requires and we are dedicating our spare time to helping those in need of support.