Emily Wong
On January 21, 2005, Emily Wong was a happy, healthy five-year-old - or so her parents thought. But in little more than a heartbeat, that all changed.
Emily woke suddenly that night, complaining that her head was sore. Although the next day she felt fine, she again woke the following night. This time she was screaming in pain and clawing at the back of her head.
Terrified, her parents took her to BC Children's Hospital. The pediatric neurologist was called in and within moments of assessing Emily, understood he had an emergency on his hands. Emily was rushed for a CT scan, which revealed a broken blood vessel in her brain. It was now 10:30 a.m. and the medical team had to move fast to save Emily. Colin and Natalie Wong stood helplessly by as their daughter was rushed into a surgical suite for brain surgery.
Five excruciating hours later the neurosurgeon emerged to give Colin and Natalie a mixed report of their daughter's progress. Although Emily's ruptured blood vessel had been repaired, the surgery had revealed the source of the bleed was a cancerous tumour pressing on her brain. Put on a one-year treatment plan Emily started radiation treatment and chemotherapy soon after surgery.
Today, thanks to advances in research into childhood cancer, Emily's chances of surviving her cancer have dramatically increased. Emily's parents are thankful for the support they received from their community and BC Children's Hospital - allowing Emily to grow up like every child should.
