Most families come to Florida to enjoy the weather, the beaches or popular tourist attractions. But sometimes the trip to the sunshine state is an effort to save your child’s life. 

When 8-year-old Valentina, from Guatemala, began having fevers and suffering from low blood counts, doctors in her native country were stumped. They could not pinpoint what was wrong with her. She was not eating well and was in constant pain. They gave her some steroid treatments, and she seemed to get better. But before long, the fevers and pain returned with more intensity to the point that she couldn’t walk. 

Lucky for Valentina, her aunt happens to live in Florida and knew about Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg.

“Medical resources for children are scarce in Guatemala,” says Valentina’s mother, Mariela. “We don’t have the advanced technology. We knew she was sick, and we had to get her better medical care. 

“A friend told my husband about Johns Hopkins All Children’s and then her pediatrician and hematologist back home also mentioned it to us. When we realized it was close to my sister's house, in Brandon, we made an appointment so she could be seen by the doctors there.” 

While Mariela worked to secure her visa’s renewal and make living arrangements in Guatemala, her husband, 10-year-old son and Valentina wasted no time and hopped on a plane to Florida. 

Jennifer Dean, M.D., co-director of the leukemia and lymphoma program at the hospital, has cared for Valentina since she arrived. After a thorough evaluation, the medical team performed a bone marrow aspiration, a common medical procedure that confirmed she was suffering from B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, the most common type of leukemia for kids and more prevalent for those with Down syndrome, like Valentina. 

“We started her treatment right away,” Dean says. “She was admitted to the hospital and received her initial induction chemotherapy over four weeks. She went into remission at the end of that first month, and we were very pleased.

“Gaining her trust took time. She is bilingual, which is amazing. I had her teaching me words in Spanish and that seemed to break the ice. She had some ups and downs like most patients with this type of diagnosis but her resilience is incredible.” 

Valentina is now receiving treatments as an outpatient and is in the maintenance phase of therapy that will last about 18 months.
 
Every time she comes into the clinic, she lights up the room. Her smile and energetic dance steps keep the staff on their toes. 

“From the first minute that my husband saw how Valentina was treated, he could feel that she was in the best place to take care of her,” Mariela says. “We connected with Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. It’s been life-changing for us. Any expectations we had were far exceeded. We found angels in every corner of this hospital. Our family is at peace because Valentina is in the best hands in this process to restore her health.”