A Second Grader, a Rare Cancer, and the Moment Hope Rang Loudest at Rady Children’s
Haisley bursts into the room with her stuffed Choco bear tucked under her arm, moving quickly, like she’s late for something fun. She smiles before anyone even says hello. At 8 years old, she’s full of energy and confidence. She’s refreshingly matter-of-fact about one detail that often catches people off guard.
“I’m a cancer survivor,” she says.
Haisley was only a second grader when everything changed. It started with an eye that crossed unexpectedly, even when she tried hard to focus. Her mom, Alma, noticed right away.
“I kept thinking, that’s not normal,” Alma says. “You just know your child. I tried to tell myself it was nothing, but something in my gut said this wasn’t right.”
A Fast, Frightening Diagnosis
In April 2025, Alma took Haisley to their primary care provider, who quickly referred them to an ophthalmologist near Rady Children’s Hospital San Diego. From there, everything moved fast. An urgent MRI in the Emergency Department. Long hours of waiting. Conversations filled with medical terms they had never heard before.
Within two days, Haisley was diagnosed with stage 4 rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare cancer of the soft tissues, located deep in her sinus cavity. Almost immediately, she was admitted to the hospital and began an intensive course of treatment at the Peckham Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Rady Children’s.
“It felt like our entire life flipped overnight,” Alma says. “One day she was just a carefree little girl going to school. The next day we were being told she had cancer and learning words I had never even heard before. Everything changed at once.”
A Complex Treatment Plan
Haisley’s treatment plan was complex. It included nearly a year of chemotherapy, along with radiation therapy. Because of the location of the tumor, surgery was not an option. Instead, her care team used radiation, including proton therapy, to precisely target the cancer while protecting nearby structures like her brain and eyes.
Her team included pediatric oncologist Sun Choo, MD, a pediatric hematologist-oncologist at Rady Children’s and an associate clinical professor of pediatrics at the UC San Diego School of Medicine. Specialists from multiple departments also worked together behind the scenes to coordinate every detail of Haisley’s care.
“As a mom, you want to fix everything for your children. This was something I could not fix,” says Alma. “In many ways, her oncology team took over and cared for her as if she were their own. Letting go was hard, but I trusted them with my child.”
Dr. Choo remembers Haisley immediately.
“She stands out,” she says. “Haisley has this presence, and so does her mom. Alma has an energy that fills the room. Families like that stay with you.”
Sara Bear, MD, a pediatric hematology-oncology fellow and another member of Haisley’s care team, remembers meeting Haisley and Alma for the first time.
“Even in the middle of a cancer diagnosis, there was something about her that just said, ‘I’ve got this,'” Dr. Bear says. “Haisley was special from day one. She is proud to be herself and completely fearless.”
Dr. Choo also knows that many people have misconceptions about pediatric oncology.
“When I started in this field, I sometimes hesitated to tell people what I did,” Dr. Choo says. “They would say, ‘That must be so sad.’ And of course there are hard moments. But that is not what defines the work. What stays with you is the joy, the resilience and the incredible strength of these kids and their families.”
Ringing the Bell
At Rady Children’s, one of the most emotional moments in a child’s cancer journey is ringing the celebration bell. For families, it marks the end of a demanding chapter. Sometimes it signals the last day of chemotherapy. Other times, it comes after follow-up scans show no evidence of disease.
“For parents, it is overwhelming in the best way,” Dr. Choo says.
Dr. Bear remembers Alma’s fierce devotion to her daughter.
“She grabbed my hand, looked me straight in the eyes and made me promise I would always treat Haisley as a person, not just a diagnosis,” Dr. Bear says. “Alma is the ultimate mama bear. Even when things felt out of her control, her faith and advocacy were such an important part of Haisley’s care.”
“They usually ring the bell harder than the kids,” Dr. Choo adds. “It is everything they have been holding inside finally coming out.”
When Haisley rang the bell, Alma cried.
“It felt heavy and light at the same time,” Alma says. “Relief, gratitude, exhaustion. They don’t just take care of your child here. They take care of you, especially when you are barely holding it together.”
Stronger and Brighter Than Cancer
Haisley completed her final chemotherapy treatment in January 2026 and continues to be monitored closely. Through it all, Alma says, her daughter never stopped being herself.
“She has hard days, like anyone would,” Alma says. “We all do. But she still cracks jokes. She still finds a way to spin things into something positive. That is just who she is.”
When other kids ask about her hair, Haisley does not hesitate.
“I’m bald because I had cancer,” she tells them. “And I’m OK.”
Alma admits there were moments when their family thought about leaving San Diego altogether, but something always kept them rooted.
“I’m a big faith person,” she says. “Every time we were close to moving, something stopped us. Now I know why. I would not want to be anywhere else going through something like this.”
Beyond medical care, Haisley found support in unexpected places. Her teachers at Wolf Canyon Elementary School helped her stay connected.
“That meant more to us than she probably realizes,” Alma says. “It reminded us that we weren’t alone.”
She had an extra voice in her corner at home, too. Haisley’s brother, Carter, was one of her biggest advocates, even requesting a meeting with her care team to ensure that his sister would be okay.
Today, Haisley still dreams big. She talks about becoming an actor, a singer or a lawyer, sometimes all in the same conversation. She also has very strong opinions about hospital food and says she would gladly trade a blood draw for a bowl of Lucky Charms or Apple Jacks any day.
Dr. Choo hopes her future is wonderfully ordinary.
“My goal for her is simple,” she says. “I want her to grow up. Go to school. Have a family. Live a normal life. That is the win.”
For now, Haisley is doing what she does best. Smiling. Talking. Moving forward, daily reminders that she’s still here and that her smile is stronger and brighter than cancer ever was.
“The way it starts isn’t how it has to end,” she says.