Mother's Viral Facebook Posts Show 5-Year-Old Daughter's Cancer Battle

While a Florida family feared losing their 5-year-old daughter to a deadly form of childhood cancer, the girl’s mother decided to share their story with the world. Ally Parker took to Facebook to document her daughter Braylynn Lawhon’s battle with Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma, with the following post going viral with several thousand comments and shares, FOX-5 reported.

In the photo, Lawhon was near death and surrounded by family waiting to say goodbye. The man next to her is her grandfather Sean Peterson, who suffers from ALS himself. Lawhorn did not pass away that day as the photo caption said she might, but is on life support and may not have much more time, per FOX-5.

However, in a post on Thursday, Parker said she was given a “glimmer of hope” by a doctor who said Lawhorn still has a chance, however slight. The doctor apparently wants to get the girl additional treatment

DIPG is a form of cancer most common in children aged five to 10. It is a fast-growing and aggressive tumor that affects motor functions in its victims, causing difficulty with balance, walking, chewing and swallowing. There is no cure for it and the odds of survival for DIPG victims is low.

Parker’s sister started a GoFundMe for Lawhon, which has raised just over $60,000 of its $300,000 goal at the time of writing.