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儿童癌症的声音：一种罕见的骨癌让一名青少年离开篮球场 - 但时间不长
即使在接受诊断结果时，艾娃·埃尔南德斯仍梦想着再次参加比赛。
来源:UCLA对于艾娃·埃尔南德斯 (Ava Hernandez) 来说，篮球不仅仅是一项运动，它还是她日常生活中不可或缺的一部分。
But when she was diagnosed at age 13 with osteosarcoma — a rare, aggressive bone cancer caused by the uncontrollable growth of abnormal bone cells — she was forced to shift her focus.
“At first, the diagnosis was very shocking,” says Hernandez, who began playing basketball at age 4. “I didn’t believe it when I was first diagnosed, and it didn’t really process in my head that I actually had cancer.”
平衡八年级的开始与这个诊断的重要性很快改变了她的生活。医院探访取代了篮球比赛，面授课程很快被在家学习所取代。
“最大的改变是无法做其他孩子能够经历的事情，”埃尔南德斯解释道。 “I was just starting the basketball season when I found out, and I had to take a break. Having the flexibility to do anything was taken away from me, and that was really hard.”
然而，埃尔南德斯决心重返她喜爱的活动。
Under the care of Dr. Nicholas Bernthal,chair and executive medical director of the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA,Hernandez found a team committed to helping her regain her strength and independence.加州大学洛杉矶分校健康中心成为她可以在继续追求长期目标的同时专注于康复的地方。
“Hernandez was so determined to get back out to play basketball and do the activities that mean the most to her,” says Bernthal, who is also a member of the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.“That is one of the most exciting aspects of our work in orthopedic oncology — we tailor our implants and rehabilitation protocols to help patients return to what is important to them. From the very beginning, Hernandez knew exactly what she wanted to get back to doing.”