Before she could ever attend kindergarten or learn how to tie her shoes, 5-year-old Eliana Feliciano- Tupou overcame her biggest life obstacle.
Days before Christmas in 2015, Eliana’s family received the devastating news that the young girl had Stage 4 Rhabdomyosarcoma, a form of cancer made up of cells that normally develop into skeletal muscles and is commonly found in children, according to the American Cancer Society.
But through treatment, prayer and a lot of support, Eliana was declared cancer free this October, less than a year after her diagnosis, said her father, Edgar Feliciano.
“It was a complete turnaround,” Feliciano said. “Last year there was so much uncertainty as to what would happen.”
As a cancer survivor, Eliana, of Chula Vista, became the first child to ring the new Survivor Bell at Rady Children’s Hospital, marking the start of a new tradition.
“It was a significant moment,” Feliciano said.
The bell, donated by the Emilio Nares Foundation, is installed in the hospital for childhood cancer survivors to ring upon the completion of cancer treatment.
“It is an honor that my child beat cancer and became a part of this foundation’s legacy by being the first child to ring that bell,” Feliciano said. “Our hope is that many more children will follow her lead and get a chance to ring that bell because that will signify that they, too, defeated cancer.”
The Emilio Nares Foundation’s goal is to assist parents of newly diagnosed children with cancer.
The foundation’s flagship program is the Ride With Emilio program that assists with transportation for low-income underserved families with to-and-from cancer treatment appointments.
Richard Nares and his wife Diane created the foundation in 2003 after losing their son, Emilio to Leukemia in 2000.
Richard Nares said he donated the bell to Rady Children’s Hospital because they did not have one while other children hospitals in the nation did.
“When that [cancer] treatment finally ends, it really is a huge celebration,” Nares said. “And Rady Children’s Hospital does not have a bell mounted to really celebrate this milestone.”
Nares said the ringing of the Survivor’s Bell should always be celebrated and that he hopes that the bell won’t stop ringing.
“It signifies not only the end of the [cancer] treatment but also the beginning of a new life, cancer free,” Nares said.
“It’s just a huge moment for these children and their families to see that struggle officially over. So that bell represents so much good.”
