Bringing hope home: Children in our community deserve world-class cancer care here

In the summer of 2022, Chrissie Aparicio rushed her four-year-old daughter, Lily, to a hospital in Daytona after her fever soared to 105 degrees. Initial bloodwork hinted at a devastating possibility: leukemia. Lily was transferred by helicopter to Wolfson Children’s Hospital in Jacksonville, where doctors confirmed the diagnosis—leukemia Ph+ ALL, a rare and aggressive form of leukemia.  

For the next two years, Lily, now seven, endured intense chemotherapy and extended hospital stays, and in August 2024, she rang the "End of Treatment” bell, a symbol of completing cancer treatment. But just six days later, Chrissie received news that Lily’s cancer had returned.  

After additional chemotherapy and a 47-day hospital stay at Wolfson Children’s Hospital, Lily’s care team determined that the next steps in her treatment would be traveling nearly 1,000 miles to a top 10 nationally ranked children’s hospital for CAR T-cell therapy, which uses the body’s immune cells to fight infection and kill off cancer cells.

The Aparicio family made the long journey to begin Lily’s treatment on November 10 and will return home to Florida on December 19, just in time for the holidays.   

“Learning of Lily’s relapse and having to leave the incredible support of Wolfson Children’s and Nemours Children’s Health, Jacksonville, to seek treatment so far from home has been one of the hardest challenges of this journey,” Chrissie said.  “We’re so grateful to the exceptional medical team providing Lily with CAR T-cell therapy, but our oncology family back in Jacksonville knows Lily—and us as her parents—better than anyone.” 

Jacksonville’s commitment to excellence in pediatric cancer treatment

Florida is home to the third largest pediatric population in the United States and represents 6% of new pediatric cancer cases nationwide but only has two top 50 ranked cancer programs according to U.S. News & World Report. Unfortunately, many families end up having to seek care out of state as an estimated 10% of Florida children with rare and aggressive pediatric cancers — and approximately 50% of relapsed cases — require specialized care that children’s hospitals in the state cannot currently provide. 

For more than 20 years, Wolfson Children’s has collaborated with donors, partner organizations including Nemours Children’s Health, Jacksonville and Mayo Clinic, and local and state legislators to invest in pediatric cancer care. These investments have included advancements in bone marrow transplants and introducing the state’s only MIBG scanning and therapy program. The hospital will also soon launch gene therapy treatments, but there is still plenty of work to be done. 

“The stress a family endures when their child has cancer is unimaginable. Keeping them together at home with their entire support system is one of the few ways we can maintain normalcy for our patients,” said Anderson Collier, MD, pediatric hematologist/oncologist, chief of the Hematology/Oncology department at Nemours Children's Health, Jacksonville, and medical director for Wolfson Children’s Hospital. “With an increased investment in pediatric cancer care in Florida, our care teams will be able to offer our patients more specialized treatments. These advancements will not only save lives but also allow families to stay in a familiar place — a factor that can make all the difference in their outcomes.”

Achieving world-class pediatric cancer care within Jacksonville and Florida as a whole requires collaboration across Florida’s specialty children’s hospitals, communities and private-public partnerships, with opportunities for increased funding in research, recruitment, programs and infrastructure to ensure high-quality care is available right here in our home state. 

“Families in our Jacksonville community shouldn’t have to choose between receiving the best care and staying close to home,” said Florida House Speaker-designate Sam Garrison. “Expanding access to pediatric oncology care locally will bring hope, support and stability to affected families while building a healthier and stronger community for our entire region.”

Florida’s push for top-quartile cancer care

Florida’s Specialty Hospitals for Children welcomed First Lady Casey DeSantis, Representative Sam Garrison and Secretary for the Agency for Healthcare Administration Jason Weida to Wolfson Children’s Hospital in Jacksonville on Monday, December 16. The specialty children’s hospitals – led by Presidents Matthew A. Love of Nicklaus Children’s Health System, Martha McGill of Nemours Children’s Health, Allegra C. Jaros of Wolfson Children’s Hospital, and Alicia Schulhof of Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital – hosted a roundtable discussion regarding Florida’s Specialty Hospitals for Children investments and innovation to advance Florida’s position as a leader in pediatric cancer treatment, research, and innovation. The work of these hospitals united with the collaboration with the public and private sectors will ensure Florida families can access world-class pediatric cancer treatment without leaving the state and their support systems. 

Together, the Florida Specialty Hospitals for Children have set a goal for all four children’s hospitals, located in key locations with large pediatric populations across the state, to rank in the nation’s top 25 for pediatric cancer. 

“Our goal of becoming a top-quartile pediatric cancer program is not just about providing cutting-edge treatments; it’s about keeping families together during their most challenging moments,” said Allegra C. Jaros, MBA, president of Wolfson Children’s. “With the help of significant private and public investment, we will be able to provide more access to clinical trials and specialized treatment protocols at the leading edge of cancer research — giving Florida’s children and families better access to cancer breakthroughs at home.” 

A group of Jacksonville community members have already pledged their support to this initiative including: the Borowy Family Charitable Foundation; Melanie & Morgan Busby; Jack & Betty Demetree Family Foundation; Nassim & Dana Elias; Jim & Tabitha Furyk Foundation; Mel & Debbie Gottlieb; Diane & Steve Halverson; the Snyder Family; Martin & Cynthia VanTrieste. Together philanthropy from these friends totals nearly $6 million. Additionally, an anonymous donor, in partnership with St. John the Divine Greek Orthodox Church, has pledged to match all gifts dollar-for-dollar, up to $50,000. This matching challenge is in memory of Leo Stevenson, who lost his battle to cancer at a young age, and in honor of the Stevenson and Carantza families.

Baptist Health and Wolfson Children’s leadership will join Florida’s Specialty Hospitals for Children in approaching the Florida Legislature to work on funding for enhanced pediatric oncology programs at each of Florida’s specialty children’s hospitals. This public-private partnership strategy has been effective for Wolfson Children’s, as demonstrated by the recent establishment of a new 20-bed pediatric behavioral health unit, funded by TPC Village Inc. and an appropriation from the state.

As the Aparicios wrap up what will hopefully be their last week after over a month away from home, Chrissie shared, “I hope that someday families like ours won’t have to face the fears and uncertainties of leaving their trusted care teams to access lifesaving treatments.”

Learn more about this initiative and how you can help here.