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Jordan Rance was only 11 years old when she was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in 2005.

¡°I didn¡¯t have any symptoms,¡± she says. ¡°I got hit in the right leg while playing a softball game. When it didn¡¯t get better after a few weeks, I had an X-ray. It turned out to be sarcoma.¡±

After overcoming their initial shock, Jordan¡¯s parents took her to MD Anderson Children¡¯s Cancer Hospital. There, several rounds of chemotherapy and a surgery performed by orthopedic surgeon made Jordan cancer-free within a year.

Today, the 29-year-old continues to show no evidence of disease. And while she¡¯s grateful to MD Anderson for saving her life, she¡¯s also grateful to the ¡ª for giving her wonderful experiences as both a child and an adult.

Children¡¯s Art Project activities provide a welcome distraction from sarcoma treatment

Jordan doesn¡¯t remember much about her actual sarcoma treatment.

¡°Until my sarcoma diagnosis, I didn¡¯t really even know what cancer was,¡± she recalls. ¡°I was so young; I didn¡¯t want any details. I trusted my parents to make good decisions. So, I only got upset when they told me I was going to lose my hair.¡±

But Jordan found a lot of joy in making art. So, whenever the opportunity arose to participate in Children¡¯s Art Project activities, Jordan took advantage of it.

¡°The Children¡¯s Art Project allowed me to feel like a normal kid,¡± she explains. ¡°Even when I was feeling really bad due to nausea, staff members would come into my hospital room and work with me there. So, I was still able to do stuff that would take my mind off everything.¡±

The thrill of seeing her art become reality

Jordan recalls being very excited when she learned that several of her designs would be featured on Children¡¯s Art Project merchandise ¡ª especially her favorite piece, dubbed ¡°Princess Diva.¡±

The mixed media drawing of a blonde fairy princess in a pink dress and a purple tiara holding a yellow star appeared on everything from greeting cards, tote bags and blankets to jewelry, holiday ornaments and even baby bibs.

¡°My mom bought practically the entire store when they had a sale one time,¡± Jordan laughs. ¡°She had bags and bags of it. To this day, I am still getting pictures of babies I don¡¯t even know with ¡®my¡¯ bibs on.¡±

The Children¡¯s Art Project¡¯s lingering influence

Because Jordan has a prosthetic femur now, she can no longer play competitive softball or any other high-impact sports. But she insists she doesn¡¯t mind.

¡°I have a titanium knee and a metal rod that stretches from my shin to my hip, but it hasn¡¯t stopped me from doing anything I want to do,¡± she notes. ¡°I¡¯ve walked around Germany, Italy and Lake Tahoe, gone swimming with sharks in Hawaii, and hiked up Diamond Head in Honolulu. My life has been awesome.¡±

Jordan also continues to find a lot of pleasure in creativity, which she attributes at least in part to her involvement with the Children¡¯s Art Project.

¡°I still find painting very therapeutic,¡± she says. ¡°I live right across from Minute Maid Park now in downtown Houston. And I have great views out my windows. So, whenever I get some downtime, I look out the window and paint.¡±

The meaningful experience the Children¡¯s Art Project gave Jordan as an adult

Jordan¡¯s experience with the Children¡¯s Art Project proved so meaningful to her that she applied for an internship with the program in the mid-2010s while she was in college.

¡°It helped make the hardest time of my life so special,¡± she says. ¡°That¡¯s why I wanted to be a part of it again as an adult.¡±

When Jordan¡¯s colleagues at the Children¡¯s Art Project learned she had once been a pediatric patient here, they arranged for her to mark a personal milestone in a way that she¡¯d always wanted to ¡ª but never had ¡ª as a sweet surprise.

¡°The Children¡¯s Cancer Hospital didn¡¯t have a bell to ring by the time I finished my cancer treatment in 2006,¡± Jordan says. ¡°So, while I was doing my internship, they took me back there and I finally got to ring it. It was really wonderful.¡±

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