In the next few weeks after my treatment started, I lost my hair and my body changed a lot because of the medicine I was taking. I got heavier, and I had lines on my skin on my back, legs, arms, and belly. I also had a lot of pain in my nerves and my joints hurt.

It was really scary coming home from the hospital for the first time. It was also hard to see my friends because I didn’t feel good a lot of the time.

One of the first friends I saw after coming home made a joke about Nutella, and it made me worry about meeting other friends.

By May 2019, I was in a part of my treatment where I took medicine by mouth and took medicine for five days every month for two years.

During this time, my body kept changing a lot, and it was hard for me to feel good about how I looked. Sometimes people thought I was a boy because my hair was short, and that made me feel sad.

Even though I knew people didn’t mean to be mean, it was still hard. I felt like cancer took away my girliness and made me feel less confident.

I decided to shave my head. It was a hard choice, but it made me feel strong because I was deciding how I wanted to look, not the cancer.

But when a friend saw me with my shaved head, they were just shocked and didn’t say anything. I understood I looked different, but it still made me feel like I didn’t fit in.

When my girlfriends talked about things like hair or swimsuits for their summer vacation, I felt left out. They didn’t know how it made me feel, and it was hard for me to tell them.

It’s not just talking about looks that can hurt. Once, a kid at school said I got cancer because I didn’t believe in God. People can believe what they want, but it’s not nice to say things like that, especially when it’s not someone’s fault.

I didn’t say anything back. I just felt really sad about it. I also didn’t tell my friends how I felt when they talked about things that made me feel left out.

I’m sharing my story now because I want people to understand more about cancer in kids. Cancer in kids isn’t usually because of something they did, and no one should ever feel bad about having cancer.

If you know someone with cancer, it’s good to remember they’re still the same person. You can talk about normal stuff like school gossip or movies, and it’s nice to invite them to things.

I felt really sad when some of my friends stopped inviting me out. But I learned who my real friends are – the ones who stayed in touch and treated me like always.

I’m trying to help people understand more about cancer in kids by raising money for charities. I hope this will help find cancer earlier and make kids feel better when they’re going through treatment.

Now I’m 17 and it’s been almost three years since my treatment ended. My hair has grown back, and I feel good. I get tired easily and sometimes it takes me longer to understand things, but I have great friends who help me.

A small thing someone says can make a big difference, but so can being kind and spending time with your friend. It makes the hard journey of cancer a little easier, and it shows your friend they’re not alone.