Family, genomics and a first-of-its-kind treatment to cure neuroblastoma

St. Jude represents hope for many, but receiving treatment at the hospital can also mean leaving behind something dear: home. Just shy of her fourth birthday, Maria Tangonan had reservations about leaving her home in the Philippines, but not due to the treatment she would receive for her high-risk stage-4 neuroblastoma. “I was scared that I wouldn’t be able to see my other family members,” she says. 

As Maria and her parents, Stephanie and Mark, set off for Memphis, TN, in the United States, their family understood the gravity of the move. Doctors were seeing limited success with traditional therapies both in the Philippines and at St. Jude. But after her care team, led by Sara Federico, MD, Department of Oncology, explored the genetic makeup of her cancer, new hope emerged. Maria was a good candidate for a novel treatment based on the BARD1 gene mutation found in her cancer.

Since Memphis would be home for a while, Maria’s “kuya” and “ate” (big brother and big sister in Tagalog) joined the family to support their “ading” (younger sibling in Ilocano). 

Having family beside Maria was important. Her creative outlets — video games, singing and especially drawing —l come from her family. “We’re a family of artists,” Stephanie says. “Everybody in the house knows how to draw.” 

With her immediate family by her side, Maria embarked on a one-of-a-kind treatment. Federico designed a protocol combining a drug to target her cancer’s specific driver mutation with chemotherapy. The treatment worked, but more than that, it gave Maria an opportunity to be her creative self. “She was jumping and singing as if it didn’t hurt her body at all,” her mother recalls.

Now 9 years old and fully off treatment since 2021, Maria looks back on her time receiving treatment with nonchalance. She’s more focused on the important things: her schoolwork, gardening, playing games with “kuya” and her new hobbies of ballet and piano. The Tangonans even welcomed a furry addition, a guinea pig called Mr. Chocolate. 

“For my birthday, Mommy and Daddy gave me a little box. I opened it and saw Mr. Chocolate,” Maria beams. “He was so tiny then, but he’s grown big.” 

While Maria’s journey to a cure took them far from the Philippines, the Tangonans, now firmly planted in Memphis, show that when home is family, you can bring your home with you, wherever you need to go.