'No More Pizza Needed!' Reddit users overwhelm hospital with takeaway pizza deliveries for two-year-old cancer sufferer
Such was the influx of pizzas from well-meaning Reddit users that children's hospital was forced to post a message on its website
'No More Pizza Needed!' Reddit users overwhelm hospital with takeaway pizza deliveries for two-year-old cancer sufferer
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A children's hospital in Los Angeles has been forced to post a message asking Reddit users to stop sending pizza to the room of a 2-year-old girl being treated for cancer.
The hospital was inundated with more than 20 pizzas in a single day after one Reddit user posted a photo of a sign in the window of a hospital that said: “Send Pizza RM 4112″, along with the headline: “Photo taken outside Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles. Smart Kid.”
The photograph hit the front page of Reddit and a number of users said they had sent Hazel Hammersley, a young cancer patient with stage 3 neuroblastoma, a pizza.
Writing on the family blog Hazel's mother said: "We try to pass the time by doing fun and silly things for our precious 2-year old.
"One of these things happened to be my Mother and I putting a sign up in the window with medical tape reading: "SEND PIZZA RM 4112".
"The nurses, doctors, other children and we all had a great time with it and thought it was just something to brighten someone's day"
In the blog Hazel's mother goes on to explain that for several days they had no response to the message but that when a link was posted on Reddit, Facebook and a Donations page it, "all went bananas".
"Several other children and nurses came into the room, with music playing, and had themselves a wonderful Pizza Party. As of yesterday evening, there was more than 20 boxes delivered and more was coming! We had such a great time!", she explains.
Such was the influx of pizzas from well-meaning Reddit users that the Children's Hospital was forced to post a message on its website asking people to stop sending pizza.
"Thank you to the compassionate Reddit users who saw this photo and responded with a pizza delivery.
"If you’re on Reddit and have seen the adorable photo below, please help Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and patient mom, Lauren Hammersley spread the word: You’ve made a little girl very happy but NO MORE PIZZA IS NEEDED."
The message concludes: "On behalf of the Hammersley family, thank you for spreading the word and we hope the photo of Hazel with a successful pizza delivery received spreads just as far and fast as the original photo has."
Neuroblastoma (NB) is the most common extracranial solid cancer in childhood and is common amongst infants. Hazel is currently undergoing chemotherapy.
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