Hattie's Cancer Journey
My daughter Hattie was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer called botryoid rhabdomyosarcoma in July 2013 when she was 16 months old. After about a year and a half of chemotherapy, radiation and multiple surgeries, she was declared cancer free in December 2014. I'm posting a photo and short reflection every day in 2015 to celebrate the end of treatment and reflect on the journey.
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44. 9/6/2013 - LADEE Launch. Wait, what's a rocket launch doing in a cancer retrospective?
I spent the previous few years working on one of the payloads aboard the LADEE spacecraft bound for the moon. The launch was scheduled that evening in Virginia and Hattie's blood counts looked good so I zipped down the eastern seaboard to meet colleagues and watch.
We all celebrated as the launch proceeded without a hitch... now we had a month to wait as the spacecraft took its strange trip to the moon before operations began.
But operations could wait. Cancer could wait. For one night, I reveled in boyish glee at the wonder of gigantic explosions and scientific frontiers.
