Carly

At five feet, five inches, Carly Pizarro looks like your typical 16-year-old girl. How she got to that height is incredible, and the fact that she’s here at all is truly amazing.

Carly was born with Turner Syndrome (TS), a chromosomal defect found strictly in females. It affects approximately one of every 2,500 live births, and 98 percent of all fetuses with TS result in miscarriage. Though symptoms vary widely among girls diagnosed with TS, they are typically short in stature, are slow to develop, and can exhibit a variety of physical irregularities.

For Carly’s parents, Carlos and Cathy, the diagnosis was a complete shock. Cathy’s pregnancy was relatively normal until the third trimester, when doctors believed she might be having twins. Turns out Carly had just swelled to the size of two babies.

“We had no idea until the day of her delivery,” says Carlos. “She had extra webbing on her neck. Kind of like those Shar Pei dogs with all of that excess skin.”

But that was only the beginning. Carly was also born with a large hematoma on the top of her head. She also exhibited classic signs of TS, including droopy ears. Years of medical treatment lay ahead.

Luckily for the Pizarros, Children’s Hospital was just a few minutes away.

Doctors at Children’s first removed the hematoma when Carly was less than a year old. Two more surgeries followed, one to remove the excess skin from her neck, and another to fix her ears. Years of growth hormone therapy followed. Slowly but surely, Carly began to grow.

Today, the Clovis West sophomore and honor roll student stands tall –nearly a foot taller than the average TS girl, to be exact. Her symptoms have all but disappeared, she’s developing as a normal girl would, and it’s all thanks to the treatment she’s received at Children’s.

“We’ve taken her to two camps for girls with TS,” says her dad. “And she was towering over all the girls. The people at the camp said that if she hadn’t attended, they wouldn’t have known she had TS. It’s all because of the wonderful treatment and surgeries that have been done at Children’s.”

Carly is still a regular at Children’s, seeing endocrinologist Dr. Swati Banerjee and orthopaedic surgeon Dr. Joseph Gerardi every six months. She will continue to do so until she’s 18, and possibly beyond.

Even when she’s not receiving her regular check-ups, Carly can be found nearly every Friday in the Hospital’s playroom or Starship Explorer inpatient unit. Not as a patient, mind you, but as a volunteer. It’s her way of thanking the hospital for a lifetime of care.

“I help the kids, talk to them, give them stuff to play with, and let them know they have a friend,” she says.

To patients and staff at Children’s, she’s more than just a friend. She’s an inspiration.

Journey Sponsored by Jim & Marie Pardini
Adventure Sponsored by Allbright Cotton