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St. Jude Patient Stories

Growing up as an American boy in Honduras, David took full advantage of his unique experience and learned to speak three languages—English, Spanish and a local dialect of the island where they live. When David began feeling ill in April 2016, doctors discovered he had acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Being a cancer survivor himself, David’s grandfather, Tom, was determined to have his grandson treated in the United States.

They soon had a referral to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®, where David’s treatment included two and-a-half years of chemotherapy. Treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20 percent to 80 percent since it opened 50 years ago.

“St. Jude is a truly special place,” said Tom. “It is a drop right down from heaven.” David recently completed treatment and now visits St. Jude for regular checkups. He’s a bright, social kid who likes to play video games and is learning to playthe guitar.