A New Chapter
- 9-year old Maelynn Gerdsen has been through quite a lot for such a young age. The social media star, known as “Mae,” just beat a rare type of sarcoma six months ago and has now amassed millions of views on TikTok of fans following her triumphant story.
- Mae’s journey began after an incident occurred with a fellow student in her PE class. A little boy accidentally kicked her in the face, which led to the discovery of her tumor.
- Rhabdomyosarcoma is a rare cancer made up of cells that normally develop into skeletal muscles. Rhabdomyosarcoma can also be found in organs, such as the bladder. This cancer is very rare, with just 400-500 cases diagnosed per year. This cancer is most often found in children like Mae and in teenagers.
Mae’s journey began after an accident occurred with a fellow student in her PE class.
Read More“It didn’t hurt at all,” Mae said, explaining how she had experienced zero symptoms. Nevertheless, something definitely seemed off, and they wound up seeing a pediatric oncologist who was able to pinpoint the type of disease she had. It was alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, “which is a type of cancer arising from the soft tissues or muscles.”
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Ironically, the incident in her gym class wound up saving her life. Her care team said that if it hadn’t been for that kick in the face, they may not have discovered it until it was much more advanced.
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The tumor, however, was in a challenging spot in her jawbone, therefore it couldn’t be surgically removed.
“When I was first diagnosed and heard I had cancer, I thought it was going to be super easy because I had no idea about it,” Mae said. “I didn’t know what it meant. I didn’t know anything about it, so I thought it was just going to be like one, two, but I was wrong.”
They credit their faith, and the support of social media, to helping them through. Finding hopeful stories of families dealing with childhood cancer provided them comfort.
@kelukalou LAST CHEMO 267/267 days! #maelynnsfightsong #cancersucks #cancerfighter #fyp #ex #coparent #exhusband #exwife #divorce #hospital #trend #dance #viral
Mae's Rhabdomyosarcoma Fight
Rhabdomyosarcoma is a rare cancer made up of cells that normally develop into skeletal muscles. Rhabdomyosarcoma can also be found in organs, such as the bladder. This cancer is very rare, with just 400-500 cases diagnosed per year. This cancer is most often found in children like Mae and in teenagers.
According to the American Cancer Society, "The only known risk factors for rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) age, gender, and certain inherited conditions can't be changed. There are no proven lifestyle-related or environmental causes of RMS, so at this time there is no known way to protect against these cancers."
Mae's cancer was treated with 43 weeks of chemotherapy and radiation treatment.
"I didn't know what it meant, because I was still in second grade, and I knew nothing about medical stuff,” Mae said of her diagnosis. “I thought it was just something that would take like two weeks, and then I'd be done. But I was sure wrong."
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Mae is fortunate to have a mother who pushed for a correct diagnosis after her gym class accident. It's so important to push for a diagnosis and get conclusive answers.
Contributing by Anne McCarthy
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