Cancer Fight Can'T Curb Nine-Year-Old Girl'S Creative Spirit

When Cassie Lazo's mom noticed her daughter's urine was red in 2021, she took her to the emergency department at Nicklaus Children's Hospital in Miami, where scans and ultrasounds revealed that the 9-year-old had a Wilms tumor on her right kidney, the most common type of kidney cancer in children.

The American Cancer Society estimates that 500 to 600 new cases of Wilms tumors are diagnosed in the US each year, but only two young adults have been treated for them in 30 years, Dr. Doured Daghistani, who treated Cassie at Baptist Health Miami Cancer Institute, tells People.

"These tumors, which start in the kidneys, become less common as children grow older and are very rare in adults," he says.

"I've been treating pediatric cancers for 30 years and I've only seen two young adults with Wilms tumors," he adds, noting that Wilms tumors are the most common type of kidney cancer in children.

During Cassie's treatment, she was unconcerned about losing her hair, her mother says.

"During her whole treatment, I'd say, 'Cassie, let's get a wig,' and she would say, 'No, why would I want a wig

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