UPMC Children’s Hospital Foundation

At 9 days old, Taytum’s life hung in the balance due to a rare heart condition. Learn about her family’s unwavering determination and the extraordinary care provided by UPMC Children’s Heart Institute.

Sydney was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder called Urea Cycle Disorder / Ornithine Transcarbamylase deficiency (UCD/OTC) at just one year old.

At four months old, Jimmy was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor and borderline hydrocephalus, and the prognosis looked grim.

At age 14, Harrison was diagnosed with Stage IV Hodgkin lymphoma. He endured five rounds of chemotherapy and 14 radiation treatments as a high school freshman.

Elizabeth’s life took an unexpected turn days after her tenth birthday when she received the devastating diagnosis of leukemia on August 3rd, 2021.  

As a toddler, Cloud was your average, active little boy — climbing all over and getting into just about everything. Right before his 3rd birthday, that all changed.

Many children with developmental and behavioral health needs experience a difficult journey toward wellness due to services that are fragmented or inaccessible. UPMC Children’s innovative Whole Child Wellness Clinic (WCWC) disrupts the current model of care with a new standard that better serves kids with behavioral health needs. 

Going through cancer at any stage in your life is unbelievably difficult, but as a 19-year-old during a pandemic, Delanee faced emotional and physical pain that she’d never felt before.

PICU physicians diagnosed Rosie with acute meningoencephalitis. While meningitis is a condition that involves inflammation or infection of the protective layer of membranes that surround the brain (the meninges), encephalitis involves inflammation or infection of the brain tissue.

In late September, following several failed attempts to wake Taylor from her now 10-week-long coma, neurosurgeon Taylor Abel, MD, suggested an experimental type of deep brain stimulation. The procedure involved implanting an electrode in Taylor’s brain to modify electrical signals.