This Amazing Childhood Ovarian Cancer Survivor Just Won a Gold Medal at the Southeast Asian Games

Dela Pisa’s journey to her first gold medal is a bit different than your typical olympic athlete — especially since her cancer battle began when she was was about 4 years old. (The exact age is unclear; various news reports have pegged it at anywhere from ages 2 to 4.) The gymnast was diagnosed was treated with surgery, according to ABS-CBN. Her past struggles, according to the network, made the win that much sweeter for Dela Pisa.

The star gymnast took to Instagram shortly after the win to thank fans and all those who helped her along the way to nabbing her first gold.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

But Effort? Nobody can judge that because effort is between YOU and YOU.????????❤️

A post shared by Daniela Reggie Dela Pisa (@danieladlpsa) on Dec 8, 2019 at 3:38am PST

The gold medal came for her performance in the Women’s Hoop Final; and the two bronze medals were awarded for the Women’s Ball Final and Women’s Clubs Final. Prior to the SEA Games, Dela Pisa bagged the individual all-around title in two European tournaments: the 2019 Liptov Cup in Slovakia and the 2019 Magic Cup Rhythmic Gymnastics in Hungary, according to ESPN.

Ovarian Cancer in Children

Ovarian cancer is rare in children. Ovarian tumors account for about 1% of all malignant tumors found in children from birth to age 17. In girls younger than 8, about four out of five tumors found on the ovaries will turn out to be benign, according to Dana Farber Cancer Institute.

Ovarian cancer often does not present symptoms — and the symptoms it does present could be attributed to a number of other (less serious) conditions. Since the disease is more common in older women, symptoms a child or a young woman is experiencing may not register as possible indicators of the disease. Even women who are going through menopause may experience some bias when reporting symptoms.

“Because the symptoms of ovarian cancer are not specific, and happen around the time of the menopause when women are going through other changes in life, many physicians don’t recognize that they could cause ovarian cancer,” Dr Beth Karlen, a gynecologic oncologist at UCLA Medical Center, told SurvivorNet in a previous conversation about the disease. “Many studies show that the average delay from the time a woman notes symptoms to her diagnosis may be around nine months.”

She added, “That’s why if you do have these symptoms, even if it’s only for two weeks but they seem to be getting worse, you should call your doctor.”

Oftentimes with ovarian cancer, surgery is recommended as the first, upfront treatment, according to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center’s Dr. Elizabeth Jewel.

Ovarian Cancer: Making the Treatment Plan

 

Dr. Jewel told SurvivorNet in a previous interview about treatment options that the goal with this upfront treatment is to remove “all the cancer the eye can see.” Surgery, she said, is the backbone of treating ovarian cancer. It also happens to be where the survival rates are highest.

Dr. Jewel also pointed out, though, that surgery may not be an option for every person with ovarian cancer. Some factors such as age and overall frailness may make surgery too much of a risk for the patient. In that case a different treatment plan — perhaps involving chemotherapy first — would be decided on.

In Dela Pisa’s case, the young gymnast was able to undergo surgery — and as her recent gold medal wins indicate — bounce back with incredible force.

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