59. Pediatric Cancer Diagnosis: Why Parents Must Keep Asking

A mother’s intuition helped save her son’s life.

When four-year-old Enzo developed persistent congestion, his mom, Krista Keller, knew something was wrong. But after visiting five doctors over two months, Enzo was repeatedly diagnosed with allergies and sinus infections.

Krista even asked whether cancer could be causing his symptoms and was reassured that it wasn’t.

Then, after Enzo became increasingly sick and lethargic, Krista and her husband took him to a children’s hospital. One scan revealed a large mass blocking his airway. Enzo was diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma, an aggressive pediatric blood cancer.

As part of Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month, we’re sharing the voices and experiences of parents and families who know childhood cancer firsthand. In this episode of Game Over: c*ncer, hosts Dana Nichols and Val Solomon speak with Krista about the realities of delayed pediatric cancer diagnosis, trusting parental intuition, advocating for your child in the medical system, and the emotional trauma childhood cancer can leave behind long after treatment ends.

Krista also shares how Enzo’s diagnosis led her to create the Enzo and Me Pediatric Cancer Foundation from his hospital bedside. Today, the organization helps fund pediatric cancer research focused on some of the most underfunded and difficult-to-treat childhood cancers, including brain tumors, sarcomas, AML, neuroblastoma, and other cancers where better treatment options are desperately needed.

This conversation explores:

• Early signs and symptoms of pediatric cancer

• Delayed childhood cancer diagnosis

• Why parents must advocate when symptoms persist

• Burkitt lymphoma in children

• The emotional impact of childhood cancer