As students throughout Lewisboro and Katonah routinely make their way through school every day, Sabrina Marciante could not be happier to be in class. For the 8-year-old third grade student at Lewisboro Elementary School, the classroom is a place where she can be with her friends and just be a kid, something she missed last year while battling acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), a cancer most common in children.
Sabrina missed out on a year of her childhood after being diagnosed with ALL in June 2011, but thanks to a legion of supporters, she is winning the fight and will be recognized as a symbol of courage as an "Honored Patient" at the Light the Night Walk on Tuesday, Nov. 27, in White Plains, an event organized by the Westchester/Hudson Valley chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS).
The event, which will be held at the Westchester County Center from 6 to 9 p.m., was originally scheduled for Nov. 3 at Playland in Rye, but it was postponed because of Hurricane Sandy.
"I think it makes her happy," her mother, Barbara Marciante, said of Sabrina being honored at the event, which benefits research and families stricken with the disease. "I think the main thing for her, as an 8-year-old, is the support that she's getting from them. As a child she was secluded for a whole year. Just knowing that they made her an honored patient, I think it gives her the insight that, 'Yeah, I'm going to be OK.' It's the moral support that so many people had faith in her."
Diagnosis
In May 2011, Sabrina felt a bump on her head that had not gone away for a few weeks. She received a negative X-ray and then went to a dermatologist for a biopsy, and on the last day of school she was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Further testing revealed that she had ALL in her lymph nodes and bone marrow.
Sabrina began chemotherapy treatments at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital in New York City and was basically confined to her home, with her weakened immune system forcing her to avoid school, visits to friends' houses and public places.
Light the Night
Thanks to the treatments and the support of her family, including her sisters Melanie, 13, and Jillian, 10, Sabrina is back in school, playing with friends and getting out of the house. Ms. Marciante said they still have to be careful, but that Sabrina is "thrilled" to be doing normal kid things again.
An animal lover who aspires to be a veterinarian, Sabrina became involved in Light the Night last year when a family friend formed a Light the Night walk team ? "Team Bean" ? in her honor.
Teams raise money for the annual walk, which also includes children's activities such as face painting, a bouncy castle, arts and crafts, and other activities.
Ms. Marciante said she is passionate about the mission of LLS and has seen the impact of raising money for the organization.
"People did this 10 years ago, and I feel my daughter is benefiting from that," she said of past fund-raisers. "It does make such a big difference. The research is so important."
Anyone is welcome to attend and participate in the event, which generates a level of support that Ms. Marciante said is "overwhelming" to see.
"She's just so excited to be a part of it," Ms. Marciante said of Sabrina. "She doesn't see how inspiring she really is. She's starting to understand that 'I am brave and I can do this.'"
Information about Light the Night may be found online at lightthenight.org/wch or by calling 914-821-8362.
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