Deer Lakes kindergartner inspires community while battling brain cancer

When Sara Latronica told her son, Noah, he had brain cancer, he didn’t understand it was not a common disease.

She remembers him asking every person he encountered if they had cancer.

“We had to tell him that he had something rare,” she said.

The 5-year-old was diagnosed with brain cancer at 7 months in 2017. Sara Latronica remembers the months leading up to the diagnosis. He was throwing up, losing weight and developing a head tilt.

“We took him to lots of doctor appointments, and no one had answers,” she said.

Following his first diagnosis at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, Noah has had five surgeries. The cancer recurred twice: first in 2020 and again this year. His mother said, throughout his journey, Noah has taken the treatments and surgeries well.

“He is so resilient. He handles it with grace each time,” she said. Nevertheless, the news of Noah’s cancer returning this year was a blow to the family, as they were looking forward to his first day of kindergarten at Curtisville Primary Center in the Deer Lakes School District.

While Sara Latronica said the journey has been difficult for the family, they try their best to make sure Noah is still having a fun childhood. The family planned trips to the beach, zoo and Walt Disney World.

“We do our best to live in the moment and appreciate every day we have with Noah,” she said.

The Deer Lakes School District posted a photo on Facebook of teachers wearing gold shirts on Sept. 10 to support Noah. Gold is the color used for childhood cancer awareness, and September is National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

Melissa Eck, a kindergarten teacher, sends a text every day to Noah through his mother to let him know she is thinking about him. Before his fifth surgery Sept. 9 in Philadelphia, Eck sent him a message.

“I sent a message to his mom wishing him luck and told him everyone is thinking of him and that he is a strong kid. He is an inspiration to all of us,” she said.

Administrators found out about the diagnosis before the start of the school. They resolved to give Noah the most normal experience possible.

“We wanted to focus on the physical and mental well-being of a 5-year-old boy and make it a safe space,” Curtisville Principal Jen Cavalancia said.

Noah attended kindergarten at Deer Lakes for a week and a half before he traveled to Philadelphia for his brain surgery. The short stint was enough to leave an impact on the school.

“He has been described as a breath of fresh air,” Cavalancia said. “He finds a smile through any difficult challenge or situation.”

The West Deer community also has shown support for Noah and his family.

Bonnie Lubatti, owner of Antler Grafix, helped raise money for the Latronica family twice by selling gold shirts that say, “Never stop fighting,” with the words “Noah’s Warriors” on a gold ribbon. Last year, families and doctors who met Noah were interested in buying a shirt. This year, she said the community came together to buy shirts. All proceeds are given to the Latronica family.

“We are grateful they asked us to do it, and we are happy to do it under these circumstances. Noah is a very sweet boy,” she said.

Noah has remained in high spirits throughout his recovery from his eight-hour surgery. After getting almost all of the tumors removed, his mom said, he was up and running three days post-operation.

“I have been so amazed at his positive attitude,” she said.

Seeing all the outpouring of support from the community, Noah asked his parents, “Why do people love me so much?”

For Sara Latronica, the answer was easy.

“People want you to know that you’re a fighter,” she said.