Lucy

Five-year-old Lucy embodies grace and strength, finding joy in being ‘fancy’ with tutus and tiaras. But the stage for her September birthday wasn’t a princess tea party; it was the end of treatment bell in CHEO’s Medical Day Unit—the place that had been her second home for a year while she battled cancer. In Latin, Lucy means ‘light’ or ‘bringer of light’ and with this little girl, it rings true!

Decked out in a blush pink dress and a matching hairband gracing her newly lush hair, Lucy brought the fancy. As she reached up to grab the rope, she was wrapped by love: her mom, Kylie; her dad, Mike; little sister Layla; and a loving circle of family. Her CHEO care team of nurses, staff, and child life specialists formed a triumphant gauntlet of high-fives and cheers. Every single person had played a role in guiding Lucy to this moment, this glorious finish line and beautiful new beginning.

Lucy’s diagnosis struck an already reeling family. Her two-year-old cousin was preparing to start leukemia treatment at CHEO, and Kylie was still mourning the loss of her own mother, and Mike the loss of his father, both to cancer. The very next morning, while hugging Lucy, Kylie noticed she had a lump. Her mother’s instinct kicked in. She didn’t hesitate. Within 48 hours, they were facing their own cancer diagnosis: a grapefruit-sized tumour resting in Lucy’s small abdomen.

Initially suspected to be neuroblastoma, the team soon identified it as a Wilms tumor—a rare, but treatable, type of kidney cancer most often found in children. The CHEO team mobilized instantly. Tiny Lucy endured four surgeries, including the complex removal of the tumor, and a rupture of that tumour, which had wrapped itself around her ureter. Her prescribed protocol: seven months of chemotherapy and one week of radiation.

To shield her four-year-old from the looming, adult word ‘chemotherapy,’ Kylie and Mike changed the narrative. The life-saving treatment coursing through her body – in a true search and destroy mission against the cancer cells—became known as ‘Big Medicine.’ Challenging, yes, but manageable.

While the Big Medicine saved her life, it took a devastating toll. Frequent infections forced agonizing trips to the Emergency Department, leaving Lucy withdrawn, stressed, and a shell of her former self. Watching her daughter endure this trauma rocked Kylie to her core. Instead of spiralling into despair, she channeled her fight-or-flight adrenaline into enacting change.

Kylie connected with Patient Experience at CHEO, determined to improve the process for Lucy and every child who would follow. “They heard me,” Kylie affirms. “It made me feel like I was taking some control when everything else was out of control!”

Kylie’s passion, forged in pain and loss, steeled her resolve. She became the voice, fighting for change, while Mike became the steadfast rock, managing the household and caring for Layla so Kylie could be with Lucy at CHEO to care and advocate for her.

Wrapped in a loving circle of support, Lucy’s friends and family mobilized a massive CN Cycle fundraising team, Carpe Diem, which raised an extraordinary $115,000 last year. Now, they are doing it again, sharing Lucy and their family’s experience, transforming their pain into purpose.

As her birthday bell ringing approached, Lucy, wise beyond her years, had an incredible idea: instead of receiving presents, she requested donations for other children who need Big Medicine at CHEO. Lucy’s Birthday Fundraiser has already brought in $5,769, inspiring an anonymous donor to add a phenomenal $100,000 to the total!

With the end of treatment bell ringing fresh in her mind, Lucy is soaring back to her true self. “She’s artsy,” Kylie says, smiling. “She is thriving in kindergarten; it’s magic to watch her spirits soar when she sees her friends every day.” Lucy – true to her name – is love, light, and resilience in motion.

Stories of the 2026 McDonald’s Dream Team