GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — 16-year-old Grace deBest is back home after ringing a gold bell to mark the end of her two-year cancer treatment at Helen DeVos Children's Hospital.
Grace, who is from Stevensville in Berrien County, was diagnosed with leukemia in 2019. Now, her cancer is officially in remission.
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and now that Grace's cancer is in remission, she has a message for other kids who are waiting for the day they get to ring that bell.
“It's coming. It'll come. We've been waiting for so long...It's a big deal. And it's finally here,” Grace said.
"Means everything to our team, this is kind of the reason that we get up in the morning," said department chief for hematology and oncology Jim Fahner. "A great success, another one of our kids who’ve come through a long and arduous childhood cancer journey a healed, energetic, wonderfully healthy young adult and we’re all here to celebrate with them.”
Grace was greeted by family, friends and healthcare workers as she prepared to ring the bell and leave the hospital. She says she has received ample support from them.
“It’s been great. Honestly, our whole community has just always been there,” Grace said.
Monday night she got to spend time with them, decorating the homecoming float at her high school.
"(Surviving cancer) definitely gives you more of an appreciation for every day, because not every day is promised," she said.
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