HOUSTON – September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, a cause we are closely connected to at KPRC 2 with our Bells for Abigail series.
The series was inspired by a brave cancer fighter named Abigail Arias. Through her own cancer battle, she encouraged children like her to keep fighting their disease.
So as part of the beautiful legacy that Abigail left behind, we are celebrating the moment children ring their end-of-treatment bell.
One little girl who rang the bell, and sent us video, is Kinsley Curley.
Kinsley was 3 years old when she was diagnosed with Wilms tumor. Her mother said the cancer was discovered in April 2017.
“She was getting a bath one night and we discovered that her stomach was very large on one side,” said Erica Curley.
Kinsley’s parents immediately took her to an urgent care, and they were then sent to a hospital emergency room.
“They diagnosed her with Wilms tumor, which is a tumor on her kidney,” said Curley. “All of a sudden, they’re wheeling her back to remove that kidney and that tumor.”
That was followed by 32 weeks of chemotherapy and eight rounds of radiation.
Little Kinsley lost her hair during treatment, but she never lost her infectious spirit.
“She wanted to play. She wanted to be entertained. She was singing and dancing along with the nurses,” said Curley.
“I was never like scared when they like poked needles in my arm because they would have Legos for me to play with, something to keep my mind off of all that scary stuff,” said Kinsley.
Eight months later in December 2017, with the scary stuff behind her, Kinsley rang her bell.
“I thought I was going to break it, I rang it so hard,” said Kinsley. “I felt like my whole life started all over again.”
Around that same time, another cancer warrior rang her bell. On that day in October 2017, Abigail had the same big smile on her face that Kinsley had as she rang her bell.
It was this very moment that inspired KPRC 2′s Bells for Abigail series.
The timing of their bell-ringing was not the only coincidence for these two cancer fighters. Both had Wilms Tumor, diagnosed just months apart. They fought the disease almost simultaneously.
They were two separate battles, lead with the same bravery, that paved the way to both becoming ambassadors for other kids fighting cancer.
Abigail’s journey was as an honorary police officer, sworn in as Officer 758 by the Freeport Police Department.
As for Kinsley, who is now 8 years old, is using her voice to inspire children as an ambassador for MD Anderson.
“It’s fun to raise money for kids that were just like me,” said Kinsley.
If you have video of your child ringing the end-of-treatment bell, we would love to share it with our viewers. Upload it here.