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2-year-old cancer survivor hears for first time: ‘Her whole body started to tremble’

Posted at 10:24 PM, Oct 02, 2019
and last updated 2019-10-02 22:24:17-04

STRONGSVILLE, Ohio – For a little girl named Grace, sound is expected to get sweeter.

The 2-year-old recently had cochlear implants activated at Cleveland Clinic Children’s, allowing Grace to hear her own name and mother’s voice for the first time.

“All of a sudden hearing all of these things, it’s very overwhelming to her,” said Grace’s mother Valerie Revell-Rosian, of Strongsville, Ohio. “It's a lot I would imagine to take on. So when we did put it on, her whole body started to tremble.”

This latest milestone is one of many for Grace who is a two-time cancer survivor born with Down syndrome. Revell-Rosian says Grace was born with Transient Myeloproliferative disorder, a form of leukemia.

“She was born with a form of leukemia and immediately started treatment the second day she was born,” said Revell-Rosian. “She was born two months premature so she only weighed a little bit over four pounds when she started her chemotherapy.”

Sister station WJW featured Grace's story after her monthslong hospital stay in 2018.

Grace’s mother says she was in the process of learning American Sign Language to better communicate with Grace. She believes the cochlear implants will allow her daughter to develop stronger verbal speech.

"I don't ever want to put limitations on her," Revell-Rosian said.