ROYAL OAK, Mich. (WXYZ) — Karen Jabczenski had two lives: Eight hours a day, five days a week, she was a nurse clinician, caring for children with cancer and other blood disorders at Beaumont Health in Royal Oak.

It’s a tough but rewarding job Jabczenski says is her calling.

“To be able to take care of people during the toughest time of their life is great, it’s great I love it,” Jabczenski said.

Like many women, when her shift is over, her nurse “hat” switches to mom, enjoying her family and raising her two daughters. But three years ago, her two worlds collided in a devastating way.

“Her heart rate dropped, she became unresponsive. They rushed her in for a CAT scan, found the tumor and the bleed, she was close to herniating,” Jabczenski said.

Her 9-year-old daughter at the time was diagnosed with atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumors, or ATRT, a rare and fast growing tumor in the brain.

Source: ‘Is this really us?’: Pediatric cancer nurse gets daughter as patient

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