In May 2020, after months of visiting doctors for symptoms like throwing up and getting diagnoses that it was “nothing to worry about,” Elisabeth Davila became exhausted and took her son, Sebastian, to Nemours Children’s Hospital. Due to the pandemic, Elisabeth had to enter the hospital alone with her son and wait to find out why he kept throwing up.
“The emergency room doctor came in with tears in his eyes,” Elisabeth said. Immediately, she knew it was serious. Sebastian had a brain tumor.
“When he first said it, I smiled and said, ‘Are you joking?’ Because it’s just a very surreal moment and you don’t want it to be real,” Elisabeth said. Elisabeth turned to the nurse for confirmation, and the nurse replied, “Yes, I’m very sorry.”
At the time, Elisabeth was 30 weeks pregnant with her daughter, Marliss – a miraculous, unplanned, natural pregnancy.
“I got very concerned I was going to go into some kind of shock and lose the baby, so I got out of the room and called my husband,” Elisabeth said.
The hospital wouldn’t allow Elisabeth’s husband to come in due to the pandemic, so she had to call and tell him that their son had a brain tumor. Durann, Elisabeth’s husband, was in shock when he heard his wife’s words.
The pair had gone through six years of infertility before trying in vitro fertilization. Finally, Elisabeth’s dream to become a mom happened, and her twins, Sebastian and Hunter, were born Feb. 10, 2015. Now, one of her twins has to go through nine rounds of chemo.
Sebastian and Hunter share a special bond. “Hunter knew something was wrong, too, because everyone was crying and no one would tell him why,” Elisabeth said. “Hunter asked if Sebastian was coming home, and so I said, ‘Yes, he is going to come home.’”
Sebastian did come home. On May 12, 2020, Sebastian underwent brain surgery to remove the tumor. On May 14, 2020, they found out it was cancerous, and he would need intensive treatment to treat the medulloblastoma, a fast-growing cancerous tumor in the brain. After five weeks in the hospital, Sebastian came home.
“The tumor was the size of a halo orange, so it was very large,” Elisabeth said. “The doctors at Nemours saved his life, and I felt so humbled.”
The surgery successfully removed all of Sebastian’s tumor; however, it affected Sebastian’s eyesight, and he is now considered legally blind. He will soon start his sixth round of chemo and will need to undergo constant scans for four years to ensure his cancer doesn’t come back.
“This whole community has been absolutely incredible. We don’t want to leave,” Elisabeth said. “As a neighborhood and being so close to Nemours, I think we do have the opportunity to make a difference in these kids’ lives.”
Due to COVID-19, dropping off tangible things for kids at Nemours is tricky, but Elisabeth believes that the community could do more to help. While the cafeteria is a help, Elisabeth suggests having restaurants cater lunch or families bringing things over.
“It’s such a hard time, and there’s a lot of good resources the hospital gives you. But the families need a lot more emotional support.”
Once COVID-19 is over, Elisabeth wants to start a charity to bring more awareness and raise money not only among residents of the community but also for the pediatric medical community.
“Knowing how to tell the moms what to look for without telling them it’s cancer – because you don’t need to alarm them – is the best awareness,” Elisabeth said.
Sebastian’s symptoms, including vomiting, difficulty with balance, and abnormal eye movements, are all classic signs of a brain tumor. Elisabeth’s numerous pediatric doctor visits never suggested further testing to check for a brain tumor.
“I’d love to do something more to share awareness because it is so difficult,” Elisabeth said. “It’s providence that we are here [in Laureate Park, Lake Nona], only one mile from the hospital where he was diagnosed.”
Photos Courtesy of Elisabeth Davila
