# @childrenscolo on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DVUZ0vxlEl2
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/68564194-childrenscolo-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/dd3dffc286.jpg
- **Posted:** 2026-02-28T22:44:31.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** Children's Hospital Colorado (@ChildrensColo) — https://gondola.cc/ChildrensColo

## Caption

When Rowan was just 2 months old, he developed a large lump on his palm, just below his thumb. After visiting several doctors in his family's hometown of Billings, Montana, they were directed to Children’s Hospital Colorado and Dr. Navin Pinto, a pediatric hematologist/oncologist.

“Rowan went under anesthesia to do an MRI. And that's when the surgeons walked in and said that it was a tumor and it could be cancer,” his mother, Serena, recalls. 

After another biopsy, Rowan was diagnosed with infantile fibrosarcoma, a rare soft tissue cancer. Because our experts use whole-genome sequencing to fully understand the genetic causes behind different cancers, Dr. Pinto learned that Rowan’s tumor was caused by an extremely rare genetic mutation that has only occurred in a handful of cases across the country. 

This meant that treatment would require a different type of targeted therapy, one that insurance initially refused to cover. Thankfully, the family and doctors were able to convince them otherwise. 

For the last few months, Rowan has been receiving the treatment he needs, and his tumor has become dramatically smaller. He gets rechecked weekly at BillingsClinic, a Children’s Colorado Care Alliance regional partner near his home. What’s more, Serena, Zachary and their doctors in Montana are in regular communication with Dr. Pinto to ensure Rowan’s care remains seamless and effective. 

And since Rowan receives most of his care close to home, he gets to spend more time with two of his favorite people in the world: his siblings.

Zachary and Serena hope that Rowan’s story helps others see the importance of medical research, new treatments and access to world-class care. “Kids get to keep their lives,” Serena says. “Rowan got a cold last weekend, and it was just completely fine. And his brother and sister get to go to school. He gets to be a regular kid and have no idea what's going on.” 

#HereItsDifferent #RareDiseaseDay #GeneticTesting #PrecisionMedicine #pediatrics #ChildhoodCancer #InfantileFibrosarcoma #HereRareIsCommon

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- **Likes:** 467
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## Tags

genetictesting, rarediseaseday, infantilefibrosarcoma, pediatrics, hereitsdifferent, hererareiscommon, precisionmedicine, childhoodcancer

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