Apoorva Vijapurapu
Apoorva Vijapurapu joined her mom, dad and big brother Arjun on December 4th and instantly brought more joy into their world. Early on, it was clear she was a special little girl. She could recite state capitals, continents and planets by the age of two and was talking in complete sentences. She loves school and really wanted to attend just like her big brother. Even wheelchair bound and undergoing treatment, she still attended school every Friday. She loves reading books, dancing and singing all day long.
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Apoorva loves going to the park everyday when she was able to play along with listening to music, arts and crafts and loves stories. She is incredibly close to her big brother and their favorite game to play is Go Fish and their whole family loves to play games like Uno and Clue together. Apoorva's favorite things to eat are Indian food and pasta and family trips to Olive Garden are always a happy memory. Time together is the most important thing for the Vijapurapu family and they spend every moment they can together and are so thankful for experiences like Apoorva's Make-a-Wish trip to Disney and vacations to Great Wolf Lodge, Colorado and New York where they got to make incredible memories.
Diagnosis
After a viral infection in May of 2022, Apoorva started showing some changes that were out of character for her, like crying at bath time or riding her bicycle, chewing very slow and screaming in her sleep. Her pediatrician thought it could be Bell’s palsy and referred her to a neurologist. By June 10, 2022 Apoorva had trouble running, chewing, and complained of headaches. Life changed completely for the Vijapurapu family on that day when a MRI showed a mass in her brain. She was moved to Children's Medical Center in Dallas where they were told that it was DIPG and untreatable. In complete shock, her family tried getting multiple opinions from different doctors and hospitals in different countries but everyone had same answer.
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Apoorva had 30 session of palliative radiation without anesthesia. In August of 2023 she had her first hemorrhage and was hospitalized again. After that setback, she was back home and doing well on steroids but a trial medication caused another hemorrhage and she had foot drop and lost the ability to walk from October to November.
In January she enrolled in a different trial called ONc201 along with physical therapy and occupational therapy, which helped her and she was doing well for a while. Her family was able to go on her Wish trip in March and she thoroughly enjoyed time with family and grandparents.
Apoorva was almost on the verge of walking again when tumor progression began around September and she had balance issues and had to stop physical and occupational therapy. She endured a second round of radiation in November which helped with symptoms and she was able to enjoy her birthday with friends and family. Apoorva's family does not have immediate relatives nearby and are so thankful for their friends and neighbors who have supported them through their journey, coming to the rescue many times with support both big and small so they could focus on caring for Apoorva. Her grandparents have fortunately been able to travel very long distances several times to spend time with her and Arjun and got to experience several trips with them to make memories.
A few months after tumor progression began, she had an infection which put her back in the hospital for several weeks and made her weak for quite some time and in April she had a seizure and lost the ability to sit up, talk or move her arms. After that, doctors were not hopeful and told her family she had only couple of weeks left, but she continues to fight. She was always a very active and bubbly girl and even now when she is confined to bed she enjoys books and giggles at jokes and listening to songs. She chooses what to wear and what to read by moving her eyes.​
It’s been an emotional roller coaster ride for their family, but Apoorva is a true warrior and she gives them the courage to continue to fight and stay positive.​ ​Apoorva's bravery and courage through her journey is contagious and the Archer Foundation is proud to support this incredible family as they face each day with strength and hope.
