Doctor Dresses Up as Unicorn for 4-Year-Old Patient's 'No More Chemo' Party — See the Sweet Surprise!
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital/Facebook
At St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, patients mark the end of chemotherapy with a special "No More Chemo" party hosted by doctors and staff. At a celebration earlier this month, one doctor really went the extra mile to make a young patient smile.
Dr. Santosh Upadhyaya recently surprised his patient, 4-year-old Kyla of Florida, by donning a pink unicorn suit for her special day, the hospital tells PEOPLE. The heartwarming moment was captured in a heartwarming video shared on social media.
In the clip, the doctor entered the room wearing the inflatable outfit before giving his patient, who was wearing a festive tutu, a big hug.
The group then sings a special song for Kyla, ending with "pack up your bags, get out the door – you don't get chemo anymore!"
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Her doctor, a pediatric neuro-oncologist, tells PEOPLE his "biggest joy" was seeing Kyla's smile when he entered the room.
"I was just wondering how Kyla is going to react and, is she even going to recognize me in this outfit?" he says. "That was the first time that I think I had seen her so happy."
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Kyla arrived at St. Jude with "an aggressive" brain tumor, which comes with a high risk of "treatment failure and recurrence."
After more than eight months of treatment, tests showed Kyla's tumor "had responded considerably" since beginning treatment. So, it was time to send her home.
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Joni Holdiness, a neuro-oncology care coordinator at St. Jude, tells PEOPLE that Kyla wanted her doctor to dress up for the event, but had no idea that her mom had brought in a pink unicorn suit for him to wear.
"We had all talked about it, but they did not know until the day that she had actually gotten the outfit," she says.
Naturally, Kyla "was super excited" to see her doctor in the flashy ensemble — and he even paraded around the hospital in the outfit for other kids to see, adds the care coordinator. "It was just a great fun day."
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"No More Chemo" parties only last about five to 10 minutes, but they mean so much to children like Kyla.
"It's not just a celebration for them," her doctor tells PEOPLE. "It is kind of many a times the feeling, 'Okay now we have conquered the cancer and hopefully this will not come back.' "
In addition to the "No More Chemo" parties, the renowned research hospital's upcoming Thanks and Giving campaign, which runs through the holiday season, will kick off in November. The annual campaign calls on celebrities and influencers to help support patients and their families during the holiday shopping season.
