Special To The BEE

Fresno girl, 6, fights brain tumor

Friends held a $22-a-head benefit Sunday and had raised $3,000 beforehand.

By Jim Guy / The Fresno Bee
05/25/08 21:30:07

Fresno police officer Edgar Valle-Sandoval and his family are facing the crisis of having a child with inoperable brain cancer. But they don't feel as though they are facing it alone.

Sunday, as friends and fellow officers rallied around the family at a benefit at the Elbow Room in Fig Garden Village, Valle-Sandoval wept as he thanked his friends for turning out to a $22-a-head benefit lunch. Before the event began, $3,000 already had been raised.

"I feel like the guy in the Verizon ad who turns around and there are 1,000 people behind him," he said as he fought back tears.

Valle-Sandoval's daughter, Natalia, 6, was diagnosed in early April with a cancerous tumor on her brain stem.

Because of the location of the tumor, surgery is not an option.

So she is undergoing six weeks of radiation and chemotherapy at UCSF Medical Center in San Francisco.

That has put a hold on everything in the family's life as both Edgar Valle-Sandoval and his wife, Roni, take time off from work to be with Natalia for the treatment. Monday through Friday, the family stays in San Francisco with Natalia and their other daughter, Sophia, 4. Expenses are adding up, too: the daily parking fee alone is $22.

The family leaves Fresno on Monday morning, and Natalia goes straight into radiation treatment. After an afternoon rest, she then has a chemotherapy session. Valle-Sandoval says it's a very tiring day for his daughter. He and his wife do their best to explain what is going on to Natalia.

"She knows something is wrong and that we are going to the hospital for a reason," he said. "I don't think she gets the magnitude of what it is, however. We try to talk to her as much as possible. The doctors at UCSF have just been incredible in explaining to Natalia what is going on at her level. They've been very considerate to us, and to me, that makes the situation a little bit better."

Family friend Jeannine Foraker said she already has seen some improvement in Natalia's condition and was heartened that so far, the treatments have not made Natalia ill, which can be a side effect.

Valle-Sandoval said it means a lot to the family that they can get back to Fresno after the weekly sessions.

"Every week, we come here to recharge our batteries," he said. "I'm definitely overwhelmed," he said of the support he has received from Fresno.

"I'm very humbled by it. I want to express to everyone our deepest gratitude. Even if I spent a whole day on the phone, I would not be able to get to everyone."

Police officer Pat Dalbec, who knew Valle-Sandoval when he was a manager at the Elbow Room and then became his training officer when Valle-Sandoval joined the department, was not surprised at the support for the family.

"This is a community that cares about little kids," he said. "He's a very good man and it's a great family."

To help:
A bank account has been set up for Natalia Valle-Sandoval at Central Valley Community Bank in Clovis. Donations may be made to account number 001521993 with a notation in the memo area reading ‘‘Donation for Natalia Valle.’’

The reporter may be reached at jguy@fresnobee.com or (559) 441-6339