A 17-year-old girl who initially refused treatment for a highly curable cancer was forced by the state to undergo treatment after she and her mother refused. Now, thanks to the life-saving chemotherapy she received, the teenager is now in remission and has requested to return home. And while she may be eager to go home, she's still angry about the way her case publically transpired.
The girl, known only as Cassandra C., told reporters that she is happy the treatments have been successful but she believes the alternate treatments would have had the same result as chemotherapy.
"I'm committed to finishing the rest of my chemo, which is 2 more cycles, March and April. I would love more than anything to be able to come home to finish it all. I miss my life so dearly, especially my mom, my cat and my boyfriend," Cassandra typed from her hospital room in an interview conducted via Facebook messages. "I will never be okay with how this all happened - being taken away from home, hospitalized and especially being strapped to the bed for the surgery for the port placement. Although I haven't had any major side effects besides hair loss, I still wish I was given the right to explore and go with alternatives."
"Anybody should have that right. Minor or not. But, hearing the wonderful news about being in remission - not having any visible signs of active cancer is what helped me accept the chemotherapy, knowing it's working and I don't need any radiation. [That] encouraged me to keep going and just get it done and over with."
In January Cassandra was ordered into temporary state custody by the Connecticut Supreme Court. The court ruled she was legally too immature to make her own medical decisions and ordered her to undergo chemotherapy at a Hartford hospital. Now, the teen has asked to commute from her mother's home to finish her sessions of chemo instead of being held against her will at the facility.
"She should be allowed to go home," said her lawyer Joshia Michtom, who is scheduled to argue for Cassandra's freedom next Monday at a hearing in juvenile court. "If, somehow, she shouldn't complete treatment, there's not a great risk that she would die. So, we're going to argue that at this point there is no imminent risk of harm."
"This is a kid who had a job [at a mall retail store], who was contributing to household finances, had a credit card that she was paying the bills on regularly. Now, she's lost the job. She's behind on her bills. It's not that she doesn't have the money to pay them ... She's in the hospital, and she just can't do it. So her whole life has been on hold."
DCF Commissioner Joette Katz declined to respond to Michtom's assertions that Cassandra is no longer a danger to herself and should be allowed to return home to her mother.
"We are very pleased with Cassandra's progress toward a complete recovery," Katz said in a statement.
"We understand how difficult this has been for Cassandra and her family, but we have had full confidence throughout that the medical professionals involved in her treatment would be successful in saving her life."
