HOLLYWOOD, Fla. \u2014 Salvatore Vanni, a neurosurgeon\u2019s son in Aventura, was 4 years old when he was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a cancer that develops in immature nerve cells. <\/p>\n
He was a patient at seven hospitals in five states and underwent 12 surgeries, 55 cycles of chemotherapy, and 50 rounds of radiation before his death. <\/p>\n
In his memory, his parents, Dr. Steven Vanni and Silvia Vanni, co-founded The Mystic Force Foundation<\/a> in 2008 to help pediatric cancer patients.<\/p>\n \u201cSad and fun,\u201d 10-year-old Laila Atkins, a pediatric cancer patient, said about how she was feeling on Thursday during the foundation\u2019s sixth annual Childhood Cancer Awareness Gold Ribbon Parade of Hope. <\/p>\n The event, which included deputies and firefighters, started outside of the Joe DiMaggio Children\u2019s Hospital in Hollywood. <\/p>\n Laila, who had an intravenous line and has been waiting for a heart transplant, stood outside with her oncology nurses. She was cheering and dancing. <\/p>\n The foundation\u2019s parade ended with a Heroes Hangout<\/a>, an after-party for pediatric patients and their families in Fort Lauderdale. <\/p>\n