Having received a lupus and rheumatoid arthritis diagnosis at the young age of 16, Michelle Usher was no stranger to doctor visits and medical tests. When she started to feel increasingly fatigued and exhausted towards the end of 2022, she did not think anything of it, until a routine blood test indicated she was anemic. […]
Pregnant with their first child, while also settling into a new house and hometown, Lisa and Michael Brown were excited about the next phase of their life, which would expand their family of two — to three. As new Pasadeneans, the couple knew choosing where to give birth was an important decision. When one of […]
After two healthy pregnancies with her boys Luca and Joaquin, and a stillbirth with her angel baby Soleil, Celina Lemon experienced secondary infertility. So, when she and her husband, Juan, found out that they were pregnant with two baby girls, they were overjoyed. Over the first 31 weeks, Celina’s pregnancy went fairly smooth, as she […]
Sallianne Acosta has a family history of breast cancer, so she began getting annual mammograms in 1998 at the age of 33 — the same year she married her husband, Rene. Over the years, routine screenings found several masses, but each was benign. In 2002, she and Rene welcomed twin girls and enjoyed a happy […]
Cathy Medina’s hip pain had taken over her life. Over the course of a year, it seemed like she tried everything: pain relievers, walking with a cane and even a cortisone shot. Nothing worked. She had trouble doing anything due to her excruciating condition. She relied on her daughter to help her get groceries and […]
On Easter Sunday 2022, Wendy Sanchez Rodriquez and Jonathan Barba went for a drive along the Angeles Crest Highway when something went wrong — terribly wrong. “What happened next is like a blur,” says Wendy, but one thing was certain: The couple had been in a serious car accident — and their lives hung in […]
Thirty years ago, Pasadena resident Rick West was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma. He underwent treatment for his cancer, which included several rounds of chemotherapy. Although Rick is now cancer-free, his chemotherapy caused aortic valve stenosis — a serious condition in which the aortic valve narrows over time. If left untreated, his stenosis could lead to […]
Jenny and Jason Hamilton wanted a baby for a long time. In June 2019, discouraged after years of trying and not getting pregnant, the Hamiltons decided to try something different. They created an email address with the username futurekidhamilton. Jenny and Jason, already proud pet parents to two dogs, wanted to affirm their desire to […]
As a referee for college basketball games, Nathan Bond has to move up and down the court constantly. When he began experiencing hip pain while officiating games, he did his best to just push through and carry on. Eventually, he also started limping and knew he needed to get checked out. Fortunately, Nathan knew exactly […]
When Grace Mikuriya was just 11 years old, her health took a quick turn for the worst. After experiencing intense abdominal pain and vomiting, her parents took her to urgent care to get checked out. Grace was sent home, but her parents remained concerned. They took her to the doctor the next day, who identified […]