News

Actions

Doctors baffled after 11-year-old girl’s brain tumor disappears

Doctors baffled after 11-year-old girl’s brain tumor disappears
Posted at 3:21 AM, Dec 20, 2018
and last updated 2018-12-19 23:35:31-05

HAYS COUNTY, TX (RNN) - The parents of an 11-year-old girl, who was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor, say they’re thanking God, now that their daughter’s tumor is no longer detectable in scans.

After experiencing headaches and sickness for a few weeks, then-10-year-old Roxli Doss was diagnosed with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma, or DIPG, in June, according to her family’s GoFundMe page.

The tumor was on the back of her brain and pushing on her spinal cord. Doctors told the family it was inoperable.

According to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, this type of tumor is typically aggressive, and the survival rate of those diagnosed is low.

"It is very rare, but when we see it, it is a devastating disease. You have decreased ability to swallow, sometimes vision loss, decreased ability to talk, eventually difficulty with breathing,” said Dr. Virginia Harrod with Dell Children’s Medical Center, KVUE reports.

Roxli went through weeks of radiation while her parents, Gena and Scott Doss, prayed for a miracle - and they got one.

Roxli’s tumor disappeared. Even when doctors double-checked the scans to confirm the results, they could find no trace of it.

Doctors say they can’t explain what happened.

"When I first saw Roxli's MRI scan, it was actually unbelievable,” said Dr. Harrod, according to KVUE. “The tumor is undetectable on the MRI scan, which is really unusual.”

As for Roxli’s parents, they say they only have God to thank.

"Every day, we still say it,” Gena Doss told KVUE. “It's kind of our family thing that God healed Roxli."

Doctors are now monitoring the 11-year-old closely. She will continue to undergo treatments, such as immunotherapy, as a precaution, KVUE reports.

Copyright 2018 Raycom News Network. All rights reserved.