4-Year-Old Girl with Stage 4 Cancer Honored as State Police Trooper

Toddler Princess Rose Ramirez is battling cancer, and the Pennsylvania State Police honors her fight by making her an honorary trooper.

Rose and her parents moved to Philadelphia from Florida after she was diagnosed with stage 4 neuroblastoma. The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is helping her get treated for her illness which began in October 2018.

She initially complained of stomach pains and what the doctors discovered was a large tumor near her kidney. The sad news came just before she turned four.

Her mom, Nicole Ramirez, says of the ordeal,

“One day can be great for her and another day can be really, really hard for her. So it’s really a day by day process getting through it all.”

Rose has shown a fighting spirit through it all, despite her very young age. Her mom shares,

“She is happy, she is feisty. Everyone on the Oncology floor knows Rosie because she is so sassy. She tells the doctors and nurses exactly what she is thinking and what she does not want. Everyone knows Miss Rosie.”

Nicole, a former prosecutor and her husband, a sergeant with the Florida State Highway Patrol are temporarily in Philadelphia for their daughter’s treatment. Surgery to remove the large tumor and one of her kidneys, plus four rounds of chemotherapy is what their little trooper, Rose, has had to endure so far.

Lieutenant Joseph Altieri of the Pennsylvania State Police Troop K was moved when he heard about Rose’s big fight and wanted to do something special for her to keep her spirits up, so they made her their honorary trooper. Altieri said,

“We hope her first big hat will help to keep her strong and determined as she continues this extremely difficult fight.”

In reply to the kindness and support, Rose’s dad Jose Ramirez replied,

“I have always known there has been a brotherhood in law enforcement being down in Florida but once we came up here, definitely felt the magnitude of how that bond really is. It is very emotional that we have so much support from complete strangers.”

Like Rose, many young children and their families are burdened by the uphill battle against cancer. Such was the case for a little boy from the U.K. named Zac Oliver who was significantly helped by the generosity of celebrity host and producer Simon Cowell. Cowell donated ￡50,000 to assist in his cancer treatment and posted about Oliver’s cause, which enabled his family to raise enough funds to allow him to receive pioneering treatment in the U.S.