When we go through tough times, it’s our family and friends that help us get through them.
But sometimes it’s easier to find comfort in the words of someone who has been through the same struggle you’re facing.
That’s why four little girls aged 4 and 5 named McKinley, Chloe, Ava, and Lauren became the very best friends. The girls shared a strong bond.
This is because they were all in the fight of their lives.
The girls were fighting cancer together at John Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Ava, Lauren, and McKinley all had the same kind of cancer, acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Chole had a rare form of lung cancer.
Even though the girls were sick, they still found time to smile.
The girls posed for a photo two years ago during their treatment.
Since they were all undergoing treatment, it left them bald. However, they still found time to play and skip in tutus and pretty headbands.
But that photo is a far cry from what the girls look like now.
Not only has all of their hair grown back but all of the girls are cancer-free.
”They were all on active treatment the first time we did this. It’s amazing to see how far they’ve come from being bald little babies,” Ava’s mom, Alyssa Luciano, told WTVT.
Their moms said having each other helped them to maintain as normal a life as they could.
It helped to remind them that they are still kids who should be having fun.
The girls returned to the children’s hospital to celebrate their survivor-hood. They decided to take some new photos and even recreate some of the old ones.
“This is our third year. They have just come so far, all of them,” said Lauren’s mom, Shawna Glynn, told FOX 26.
Their new photos show them in tutus, t-shirts, and headbands just like the old photo, except with hair and shirts that say “Survivor.”
“It was just always a breath of fresh air to see a familiar face and to know that she wasn’t alone in this,” Karen Moore, McKinley’s mom, said.
While the girls found comfort in seeing other little girls who lost their hair just like they did, the mothers also found comfort in each other.
“Just having other moms to relate to has been phenomenal. Just to have other people going through it at the same time as us,” said Karen.
The families plan to return to the hospital again next year to celebrate another year with friends and without cancer.
Learn more about their story and see how happy these girls are to be together again in the video below.
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