Cancer Survivor Returns to Vanderbilt Hospital as Doctor

When Lily Hensiek walks into Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt this February, she'll be wearing scrubs instead of a hospital gown.

The 24-year-old was just seven when doctors diagnosed her with pre-B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. She completed two years of treatment, but at 15, the cancer came back.

"The second time when she relapsed, relapse leukemia is a lot higher risk," said her mother Larissa Featherstone. Lily joined a groundbreaking clinical trial funded partly by Dolly Parton's ongoing donations to Vanderbilt's pediatric cancer program.

That experimental treatment saved Lily's life. It's now the standard care for pediatric leukemia patients across the country.

Lily has been cancer-free since 2018. This month, she begins her clinical rotations at the same Nashville hospital where she was treated, completing her physician assistant training at Kansas State University.

The Ripple Effect

One nurse made all the difference during Lily's treatment. "There was one specific nurse who was the only one able to help me convince me to take my medication," Lily said. "It was truly because she was a past survivor and had gone through it too."

That nurse inspired Lily to pursue medicine. Several of her caregivers at Monroe Carell were former cancer patients who returned to help others facing the same fight.

During Lily's battle, her family created Lily's Garden, a foundation supporting pediatric cancer research at Vanderbilt. The name comes from how doctors explained chemotherapy: cancer cells are weeds in a garden, and healthy cells are flowers that need protection. The foundation has raised over $3 million.

Dolly Parton's generosity extends far beyond Vanderbilt. Her Dollywood Foundation funds disaster relief across Tennessee and runs the Imagination Library, offering free books to children in 22 states and five countries. The hospital features Dolly's butterfly garden, where families find peaceful moments during treatment.

Lily graduates in May 2027 and is considering specializing in pediatric oncology. "I just want to be there for those people in the future," she said. "I hope I can give them some sort of confidence and just inspire them in their own way."

Today's young patients are tomorrow's healers, proving that hope plants seeds that grow for generations.