Meet Krystie

When Krystie's leg started to hurt, it wasn’t a shock. She had always been driven by a fierce competitive spirit – as a volleyball player and a soccer star. Injuries were expected.

But when months of physical therapy didn’t ease her daughter’s pain, Krystie’s mom, Kathy, grew concerned. An initial blood test and X-ray came back clean, but Kathy demanded more tests. Doctors discovered a large tumor on Krystie’s femur. The oncology team at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland confirmed that Krystie had osteosarcoma, the most common pediatric bone cancer.

From the very beginning, Kathy was confident that Krystie was in good hands. "At UCSF, they make you feel like a whole team has your back," she says. "I don’t know if they’re so kind and gentle because they work with kids or if maybe they are really, literally, angels."