Long Island Community Rallying Around Young Girl With Cancer

Taliyah Baptiste, a 9-year-old student at New Visions Elementary School in Freeport, was looking forward to starting the fourth grade on Sept. 4. Instead, her life changed forever.

As she was walking into school, her mother, Lisa, noticed that Taliyah was limping. Then her speech slurred and her eyes changed. Instead of starting school, Taliyah was rushed to her doctor, and then to Winthrop Hospital. There, she was diagnosed with Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), a rare form of pediatric cancer that affects the brain stem.

In the hospital that night, Taliyah's health rapidly declined. The next day, her doctors decided she needed to immediately start radiation therapy. Instead of going to school, Taliyah has been in the hospital undergoing therapy. Her family has turned to the community for help, and Freeport is rallying around them.

• Click here to donate to Taliyah Baptiste

Tonight at 6 p.m. at Jeremy's Ale House, the Freeport community is coming together to raise money for Taliyah's treatment. Village Mayor Robert Kennedy, along with civic leaders from the community and the school, are hosting the fundraiser. All of the money raised will go to support Taliyah's treatment.

In addition to the fundraiser, the family has set up a GoFundMe page where people can donate to help cover Taliyah's medical expenses.

DIPG is extremely hard to treat because the tumor grows into the nerves on the brain stem, which controls all of the body's functions. Because of this, doctors can't operate to remove it. While she is undergoing radiation therapy to hopefully shrink the tumor, Taliyah's doctors are also trying to get her into clinical trials.

In the month since her diagnosis, Taliyah has had more than a dozen radiation sessions, which leave her weak and tired. She has moved to a rehabilitation facility while undergoing treatment so she can start rebuilding her strength.

Photos courtesy Baptiste Family/GoFundMe