HERE AT THE HICCC Research Snapshot Director’s Message
IN THE FACE OF A PANDEMIC HICCC Researchers Address COVID-19
Cracking Down on COVID-19
Faces of the Frontline
CONNECTING THE DOTS IN CANCER
Engineering + Cancer
Dentistry + Cancer
Public Health + Cancer
RESEARCHERS ON THE CUTTING EDGE Hitting Pancreatic Cancer Where it Hurts
Commanding Killer T Cells
Election to National Academies
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
A “CURE” for Budding Scientists Newfound Hope with Cell Therapy
Velocity Goes Virtual
Unicorns in the Treatment Rooms
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS CONTACT US
HERE AT THE HICCC Research Snapshot Director’s Message
IN THE FACE OF A PANDEMIC HICCC Researchers Address COVID-19
Cracking Down on COVID-19
Faces of the Frontline
CONNECTING THE DOTS IN CANCER
Engineering + Cancer
Dentistry + Cancer
Public Health + Cancer
RESEARCHERS ON THE CUTTING EDGE Hitting Pancreatic Cancer Where it Hurts
Commanding Killer T Cells
Election to National Academies
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
A “CURE” for Budding Scientists Newfound Hope with Cell Therapy
Velocity Goes Virtual
Unicorns in the Treatment Rooms
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS CONTACT US
MAKING A DIFFERENCE UNICORNS IN THE TREATMENT ROOMS
Photo of Adeline Li in front one of a machine she
When Radiation Therapy Comes with a Dash of Unicorns and Daisies
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Unicorns in the Treatment Rooms

When Radiation Therapy Comes with a Dash of Unicorns and Daisies

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University
Photo of Adeline Li in front one of a machine she
Adeline Li
A pediatric cancer patient got a fun surprise during a treatment session when her care team transformed the radiation machine overnight into a cheerful, smiling unicorn. The five-year-old patient, who was intimidated by the large machine, was so happy about the adorably decorated “unicorn machine” that she ran into the treatment room with excitement the next day.
Adeline Li is the artist behind the whimsical unicorn, and she finds that bringing a sense of fun and imagination to cancer treatments can make all the difference.
“Getting daily radiation treatments can be tiring and intimidating for patients of all ages. For our younger patients, it can be even more terrifying because they don't have a full understanding of the treatments,” says Li, a radiation therapist at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia. “Changing what’s scaring them into something familiar helps them tolerate and even look forward to their treatments.”
“I'm very grateful that I am able to use my craftiness to make their treatments a little more exciting and a little less scary.”
—Adeline Li, radiation therapist

“I'm very grateful that I am able to use my craftiness to make their treatments a little more exciting and a little less scary.”

—Adeline Li, radiation therapist
A pediatric cancer patient got a fun surprise during a treatment session when her care team transformed the radiation machine overnight into a cheerful, smiling unicorn. The five-year-old patient, who was intimidated by the large machine, was so happy about the adorably decorated “unicorn machine” that she ran into the treatment room with excitement the next day.
Adeline Li is the artist behind the whimsical unicorn, and she finds that bringing a sense of fun and imagination to cancer treatments can make all the difference.
“Getting daily radiation treatments can be tiring and intimidating for patients of all ages. For our younger patients, it can be even more terrifying because they don't have a full understanding of the treatments,” says Li, a radiation therapist at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia. “Changing what’s scaring them into something familiar helps them tolerate and even look forward to their treatments.”
Cover photo: Adeline Li
© Columbia University Irving Medical Center,
Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center,
New York, NY.
Credit and Cast
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