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Alex's Lemonade Stand Hosts Annual Fundraiser For Childhood Cancer

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – It's supposed to be one of the most joyful times in life: the birth of a newborn baby. But just three months after giving birth to twin girls, Jim and Megan Cox received test results that shook their family to the core.

"As a parent I felt helpless. I couldn't help my child," Jim said.

They took that feeling of helplessness and turned it into action, and are now on a mission to fight childhood cancer.

Kadence and Sabrina Cox may have been born twins but at three months old, their health began to look a lot different.

"When she was 3-months-old, we started noticing that she was sweating a lot," Megan said.

"She would like drench through outfits daily," Jim said.

Doctors performed tests on Sabrina and through a CT scan made a discovery.

"They found a tumor which was between her heart and her spinal cord," Megan said.

The tumor was neuroblastoma, a cancer often deadly because it spreads fast and is often undetected.

"The tumor was about the size of a woman's fist and inside a little 11-pound body. How do you not see that and know that it's there? Things hides," Megan said. "I just remember feeling numb."

"Before that moment I didn't hear a lot about childhood cancer," Jim said. "It was so foreign to me. I still remember. I still feel sick when I think about how helpless I was."

The family stood by as doctors successfully removed the tumor from baby Sabrina six years ago.

"I had cancer that's all I know," Sabrina said.

Since that day, Sabrina has grown strong and can now say she's cancer free.

"They cut it out instead of dying," she said.

Her parents count their blessings.

"You never think it will happen to you," Megan said.

And feel compelled to help others not as fortunate.

"A friend of mine said have you heard of Alex's Lemonade Stand? They do a stand every year at the mall.' And I said I've seen it on the news," Megan said.

Alex's Lemonade Stand picked the Cox's to represent Minnesota during this year's annual fundraiser. The national nonprofit is dedicated to finding cures for all kids with cancer.

"It's because of the people that have paid it forward for organizations like Alex's Lemonade Stand that we believe Sabrina is still around," Jim said.

Watching Sabrina have the same opportunities as her twin sister is a gift, one they're fighting for for others still holding out hope.

"They don't get to enjoy childhood. They lose a lot of their childhood sitting in a hospital room. They need to go to school, they need to go to college, they need to get married, have a life," Megan said.

Alex's Lemonade Days is an annual three-day fundraiser where supporters from coast-to-coast hold lemonade stands to raise funds for childhood cancer research. This year, it takes place Friday, June 12 through Sunday, June 14.

To help raise funds, you can host a stand of just donate to the Cox's efforts. They have a goal of raising $25,000, right now they're at $22,000.

For more information on how to donate, visit Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation online.

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