As the youngest of eight children, it’s no
wonder that 15 month old Christina Mulhern
is the princess of the family. And as a veteran mom, it’s not surprising that at only five months, Tina Mulhern noticed that one of her daughter’s pupils was sometimes larger than the other.

Christina was referred to Phoenix Children’s for an MRI, where her parent’s worst fears were confirmed; Christina had a neuroblastoma, a malignant tumor the size of a walnut between her left lung and spinal column.

“When we got the news, we looked up neuroblastoma on the computer. Out of the hundreds of words on the screen ‘cancer’ was the only one that I saw,” says Tina.

By the time most neuroblastomas are diagnosed, the cancer has often spread to other areas of the body. Before surgery, doctors wanted to be sure this wasn’t the case with Christina. The family got some good news. The cancer was localized. “Considering all that was going on, it was the best possible scenario,” says Bob.

Michael Teodori, MD, Aubrey Maze, MD, Leigh McGill, MD, and Terry Wood, MD, would all play a hand in Christina’s surgery. Despite the family’s confidence in the physicians, there were risks involved because of the precarious location of the tumor. A bone marrow sample would also need to be taken during surgery to confirm that the cancer hadn’t spread to Christina’s bones. “It was so hard for me to let her go,” says Tina, as her daughter was prepared for surgery.

Doctors were able to remove the entire tumor, and Christina wouldn’t need chemotherapy or radiation. Within two weeks of her diagnosis, little Christina was on the road to recovery.

“She’s done fantastic. The fact that it was caught so early really improved her prognosis. But now she’s a little leery of doctors in green outfits,” laughs Bob.

The experience only reinforced the family’s faith, as well as the significance of family and their close knit circle of friends. Today, Christina is back to walking, talking, swimming, and being doted on by her older siblings, aunts, uncles and cousins. Where she is concerned, there is no lack of attention – or shortness of miracles.