A South Carolina high school freshman had her whole life ahead of her until she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Now, she’s asking for prayers as she enters the likely last stages of her life.
Bella Muntean, who attends Riverside High School in Greer, South Carolina. Was diagnosed in January 2017 with osteosarcoma, a cancer that begins in the bones.
Doctors only gave Muntean a 20 percent chance to live, but she chose instead to try to fight the cancer.
“I was like, ‘No, I refuse to believe that,’” the determined teen said in a video made by Greenville County Schools in October. “I know that I can do this, and I can make it. I’ve come so far.”
Muntean described her diagnosis as “really hard,” because she could not perform with her high school bandmates, where she plays the flute. Her illness came as a surprise, because she had a “healthy” diet and was active and fit, she said.
“One day I woke up, and I had trouble breathing,” she said.
Less than six months later, Muntean’s health has taken a turn for the worst, and she has instead chosen to prepare for what God has in store for her next.
In a post shared by Riverside High School last week, Muntean said she had coughed up a piece of her bronchial tube and began bleeding from her lungs.
The doctors then told her that the tumor in her lung had grown and that she wasn’t responding to treatments, and so she would continue her oral therapy — but in hospice care.
https://www.facebook.com/RiversideHS/posts/1878343198851475
In light of the dire news, Muntean is relying on her faith to get her through.
“This is NOT the end,” she wrote. “I know that God has a plan for me, and that he does perform miracles.”
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Muntean, vowing to live “every second to the fullest,” asked for prayers from her community and beyond.
“What I need right now is prayer,” she said. “Please ask everyone you know to pray for me and send good vibes.”
On Facebook, Muntean’s high school instructed students, teachers and parents to “think of Bella” when they face hardships, describing her as a “shining light, providing inspiration to all,” even in the harshest of circumstances.
“Use Bella’s story to figure out… is your problem really that big? Are you using courage and strength to fight like a Warrior? Are you continually seeking solutions with humility and hope? Have you asked for help?” the school wrote.
As part of a last-ditch effort to save her life, doctors performed a procedure to cut off the blood supply to the tumor in her lung. Yesterday, a prayer vigil was held for Muntean at the Covenant United Methodist Church in Greer.
(H/T: WYFF)