Pulaski Family Story

The Devin Pulaski Family Story

Devin Pulaski is an active 11-year-old who is known for her kindness and consideration for others. She can often be found at THON events with her little brother, Trevor, running around and making friends with THON volunteers and other Four Diamonds families.

Devin was four years old and had just started preschool when her parents, Debbi and Nick, noticed a bump on her side. It was a normal night after karate practice, and she was at her grandma’s house. The Pulaski family thought that maybe it was Devin’s stomach hurting, but it was still there the next morning when Devin was getting dressed.

Nick decided that they should take Devin to the emergency room, because they would be able to run any tests that she needed. When they arrived at the emergency room, the doctors decided to give Devin an ultrasound. When Debbi arrived to meet Nick and Devin at the hospital, she immediately knew that something was wrong. She does ultrasounds on animals for work and knew that it didn’t look good. When Debbi looked away, Nick also knew that something was wrong.

Devin had a mass on her kidney, which needed to be biopsied. After the biopsy, Devin was diagnosed with a stage-four Wilms tumor, which had also spread to her liver. From there, it was a “whirlwind” of appointments and planning for Devin’s treatment. Debbi and Nick recall sitting in the hospital room, trying to figure out how they would be able to care for Devin with her work schedule and how they would afford her treatment. That’s when Aubrey, their caseworker, came in and introduced Four Diamonds. She told them that Four Diamonds would cover the cost of her treatment, so all that they had to focus on was Devin and getting her better.

“That weight that came off of us was just immense,” Debbi said.

Because they did not have to worry about the financial side of Devin’s treatment, Debbi and Nick felt that they had a much better outlook on things and were able to help Devin to have as normal of a childhood as possible.

Devin completed six weeks of chemotherapy starting in September 2017, and then underwent a total right-side nephrectomy to remove the tumor. The chemotherapy greatly reduced the size of her tumor so that it was less risky to remove. After her surgery, Devin received radiation treatment and continued with eight more months of chemotherapy.

Usually, children are sedated for radiation because they have to be completely still, but Devin did not want to go under anesthesia, so she trained herself to lay completely still for up to 15 minutes at a time. Devin never had to be anesthetized during her radiation treatment.

“At my age, you don’t really understand what’s happening, and I think that helped me get over it a lot easier,” Devin said. Devin was known to be a social patient during her stay at the hospital, always running around every room, playing with THON volunteers visiting, and working at the nurses’ station.

The Pulaskis’ community came together to support Devin while she was going through her treatment and made sure that Devin never felt alone. Devin’s karate school had a head shaving party, where family, friends, and students came out to shave their heads in solidarity with Devin. Nick and Debbi’s work sold shirts for Devin and banded together to support her during her surgery.

The Pulaski family was previously paired with Penn State Schuylkill and is now paired with Club Spikeball. Devin has performed in the Kids Talent Show during THON Weekend every year and her organizations have always been her backup dancers on stage to support her.

Devin rang the bell in 2018 when she finished her treatment and is six years cancer-free! Devin is now a happy, healthy 11-year-old and is starting middle school this year. She loves to play soccer and is really into karate—she earned her black belt last year! Devin also enjoys cheerleading, cooking, rollerblading, hunting, and fishing. Trevor is seven years old and is “always playing video games,” according to Devin.

Everyone in Devin’s life knows her to be a kind, caring person who always looks out for others. Although no child should ever have to experience what Devin went through, Devin has taken her experience to make sure that every person she touches feels cared for.

“Something that she’s picked up from all of the treatments that she’s been through is she’s very mindful of how people are feeling and what their needs may be. She tries to take care of people, and she actually won the Kindness Award at school this past year,” Debbi said.

Devin and her little brother Trevor’s favorite memories with THON are from Harvest Day and Family Carnival and interacting closely with THON volunteers. They can’t wait to attend THON events this year and spend time getting to know more volunteers and Four Diamonds families.

“It’s a huge time that they can just focus on being kids and having fun no matter where they are in their diagnosis or treatment. They know that they have that support and that they can just be a kid. That’s awesome,” Debbi said.

Devin hopes that THON Volunteers know the impact that they have made on her life and the lives of other children and families impacted by childhood cancer.

“One person can change so many lives. All the volunteers definitely changed my life and my family’s. It’s all worth it in the end, when you know that you just changed someone’s life and they are forever grateful,” Devin said.