In Thailand, Matheryn Noavaratpong has become the youngest person in the world to be cryogenically frozen after she died of brain cancer.
(A rare form of brain cancer which was discovered as ependymoblastoma (which Noavaratpong suffered from) occurs more often in very young children.)
The little girl’s parents decided to take the course of action in hope that one there will be a cure for her type of cancer.
Two year old Noavaratpong was diagnosed with an 11-cm tumor in her left brain in 2014. Online magazine Motherboard reported that the little girl failed to wake up April 19.
The medical doctors only removed half of the tumor and told the family that the little girl would most probably not wake up from coma. Doctors also advised the parents who are both scientists to take her life support.
But Matheryn fought and woke up from her coma within the week.
Dr. Sahatorn Naovaratpong was quoted saying that her daughter woke up and surprised everyone. “We decided to fight against this cancer,” he said. “We may not beat it, but her life can lead to a further step of mankind to overcome cancer in the future.”, he added.
The report said that Matheryn received 12 brain surgeries, 20 chemotherapy treatments, and 20 radiation therapy sessions. She suffered radiation burns and lost 80 per cent of the left side of her brain, essentially paralyzing the right side of her body and affecting her sight.
For developments, she managed to stand up again and see with both eyes, and even move some parts of the right side of her body.
But the cancer continued spreading across her brain that eventually paralyzed her face and muscles, November 2014.
In January, Mathery finally laid to rest. Her family in the other hand, contacted Alcor Life Extension Foundation in the United States to preserve her body.
Alcor Life Extension Foundation deals with low temperature preservation or cryonics.
Until a cure can be found, Matheryn’s brain extracted and preserved in a stainless vacuum container is being filled with liquid nitrogen while her body in cryofreeze.
“They’re hoping that by preserving the tissue cells of this particular cancer, they can come up with a better treatment plan, and may be even eventually cure it. If you look at the global picture of what they’re trying to accomplish, it’s very altruistic,” the report quoted Aaron Drake, Medical Response Director at Alcor Life Extension Foundation, as saying.
Laid in Arizona, Matheryn’s body is waiting the day when science find a cure against her cancer and revive her from deep sleep.
H/T: Inquirer.net/ Photo lifted from NyDailyNews
