LAWRENCE COUNTY, Ala. — Children across America are asking rapper and singer P. Diddy to dance with them to bring awareness to childhood cancer.
Fighting All Monsters works to support families with children facing threatening challenges, like childhood cancer.
One member of the group is a 12-year-old girl named Mady Kelsoe. Her message: “Childhood cancer is real.”
Ashley Kelsoe says her daughter Mady was diagnosed with stage 4 neuroblastoma at the age of 8. Neuroblastoma is a form of cancer that comes from abnormal nerve cells.
“It’s a very, very painful cancer,” said Ashley. “She had full-body involvement. Every bone in her body had cancer in it.” Mady said it was tough.
After two years of treatment, Mady’s cancer didn’t show up in scans for a bit. But then it came back, this time, more aggressive.
“And now the doctors are telling you … the likelihood of her living long is not going to happen,” said Ashley. The family refused to take that as truth and found a doctor in New York. She said the doctor was completely different and had options for Mady.
Every month for two years, they’ve traveled to New York for treatment. While at the hospital, Mady met a friend in the group FAM.
Ashley said since the beginning of FAM, “Bad Boys for Life” was the unofficial theme song. That’s the music the group is using to dance and ask P. Diddy one question: “Hey Puffy, will you dance with us?”
Mady is seen in one of the videos several times, posted on her Facebook page: Prayer Warriors for Mady.
FAM is hoping the videos will catch the attention of Ellen and P. Diddy, all to bring awareness.
“Awareness brings funds, which brings more trials, which brings more cancer treatments, which brings our child actually beating cancer,” said Ashley.
Mady just wants people to know that she didn’t let cancer get the best of her. Her mother said at 8 years old, she looked at her and her dad and said: “I’m going to beat this.”
“David killed the giant … I was going to kill cancer,” said Mady.
Since August, Mady has had zero signs of active cancer, but she’s still fighting and wants P. Diddy to join her.