Teen gives her Make-A-Wish to a patient fund to honor her cancer caregivers: ‘I have basically everything I could ever want’

Claire Cardwell didn’t want to use her $6,500 Make-A-Wish gift for a trip or lavish shopping spree.

The 16-year-old instead chose to give the dollars back so she could honor her cancer caregivers.

Now in remission, Cardwell traveled Monday from Lewiston to Spokane to thank her pediatric oncologist and nurses at Providence Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital. She delivered hugs, balloons, cupcakes and her favorite drink, boba tea.

“I have basically everything I could ever want,” said Cardwell, who starts next week as a junior at Lewiston High School.

“I didn’t want to go on a shopping spree either; that seemed greedy. I wanted to donate it back. I was grateful for the people who took care of me.”

In front of those caregivers, Cardwell held up a ceremonial Make-A-Wish check for her donation through Providence’s foundation to a patient assistance program, which helps people with costs such as a gasoline cash card or hotel if they’re traveling to the hospital.

Dr. Judy Felgenhauer, Cardwell’s primary cancer doctor, earlier had nominated her for the Make-A-Wish gift.

After a June 2021 surgery to remove melanoma on her scalp, Cardwell returned to the hospital every three weeks for a year to get intravenous drug infusions, Felgenhauer said. The treatments ended in November.

Part of a clinical trial, the drug works with the body’s immune system to block cancer cell replication and help prevent the return of cancer.

“This medicine showed that it could reduce the risk of the disease coming back,” Felgenhauer said.

Cardwell said the pediatric cancer care providers always seemed happy and showed compassion at each visit. But she was simultaneously aware of sad situations around her, as babies and children faced life-threatening cancer.

“If I had to work every day like them, I would not be as happy as they are; they were genuinely happy to take care of me,” Cardwell said.

“There were babies, and I felt really bad for them, because some kids have way worse cancer than I did, and they had to stay here for weeks. I could not do what they’re doing.”

She said it was a little scary to have her first surgery to remove the melanoma. Cardwell was diagnosed at age 14. Her mom, Cori Straw, said they noticed what initially looked like a mole on her scalp and got it checked.

Her daughter wasn’t out in the sun much, so the diagnosis surprised them.

She said her daughter then had two surgeries at the hospital, one to remove the cancer when providers also took out some lymph nodes. Another surgery put a skin graft on for a 3- to 4-inch area where the melanoma was removed.

In traveling from Lewiston for care, Straw and her daughter benefitted from the patient assistance program. It paid for a gasoline card and Walmart gift card to help with travel essentials.

For the first surgery, the program covered their Spokane hotel stay for that night, because her daughter had to return the next morning.

“She had her last scan in May, and they didn’t find any cancer,” Straw said. Follow-up scans will continue every few months for about five years.

Her daughter will have surgeries with a plastic surgeon to reduce the skin graft gradually, Straw said. “They take the skin graft out a little at a time. At some point, she’ll just have a little line scar.”

The teenager joked that her skin graft includes shark cartilage and some cow.

“I’m part cow and shark now, but I still can’t swim and I don’t like water,” she said.

Angela Miller, a regional vice president with Make-A-Wish, said children typically use the gifts to go somewhere, meet a celebrity, buy a special item or be a superhero or ballerina for a day.

“I tear up every time I talk about how Claire used her wish,” Miller said. “Once in a while, we’ll have a special child who wishes to give. It’s definitely our least-common type of wish.”

Revival Tea Company’s boba tea and Sweet Frostings cupcakes were donated. A donated Spokane Balloons display had hearts and letters spelling out ‘love.’ Several of Cardwell’s family members were at the ceremony.

Cardwell recognized Felgenhauer in the crowd, and they hugged.

“I’ve never seen this that I can remember – especially for a teenager – to see her be this altruistic and hear her talk about what she saw with other kids here,” Felgenhauer said.

“Her mom should be so proud of her.”