Mom noticed something odd about her daughter's eyes during vacation, and it may have saved her life
Parents often notice things others miss: a pause that lasts too long, a look that feels unfamiliar, or a moment that doesn’t feel okay. Most of the time, those observations fade as quickly as they appear. But once in a while, paying attention to something small can change everything. For Nicole Schonlau, one such moment became the reason her family’s life took a sudden turn and possibly the reason her five-year-old daughter is with her today, as reported by Newsweek on Sunday, December 14, 2025.
Schonlau, a mother of two from Denver, Colorado, was visiting San Francisco with her husband, Andrew, and their children, Christopher, 7, and Aiyla, 5. The family was staying at her aunt’s home in the city’s Richmond district in August 2025 when she noticed something off while bathing Aiyla. “I noticed her right eye suddenly drifting upward toward the ceiling,” recalled Schonlau. “I had a wandering eye as a child, so at first I thought maybe it was genetic, but something did not feel right.” That uneasy feeling lingered.
Schonlau’s father, who was also visiting, urged the family to seek medical advice. Though a local eye doctor couldn’t treat Aiyla because of her age, he offered firm guidance as a parent himself, strongly recommending they take her to urgent care. Schonlau hesitated, wondering if they were “overreacting” and whether it could wait until they returned to Denver. Still, his insistence stayed with her. At urgent care, doctors referred Aiyla to the emergency room at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, where Schonlau expected reassurance.
Instead, after a CT scan, a doctor entered the room with an expression she would never forget. “I honestly thought they were about to send us home,” Schonlau said. “But instead, a doctor came in with a very serious look on her face and asked us to step into another room.” The scan had revealed a mass in Aiyla’s brainstem. Schonlau later sought out the physician to thank her for the compassion she showed while delivering the news. “The doctor was herself a mother to small children, and she had tears in her eyes as she delivered the news,” she said.
Aiyla was admitted immediately. “It felt like we were living our worst nightmare,” Schonlau stated. An MRI confirmed the seriousness of the diagnosis. Due to the tumor’s location in the brainstem medulla, doctors explained it was not operable and that a traditional biopsy would be extremely difficult. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, each year, almost 5,000 children and adolescents are diagnosed with brain tumors, making them the most common solid tumors in this age group. Because of their location, some pediatric brain tumors and the treatments required can affect long-term neurological and intellectual function.
Early attention to subtle signs can be critical. Just days later, the family returned to Denver to continue care before traveling to Philadelphia, where Aiyla underwent seven weeks of proton radiation therapy. Recently, she rang the bell marking the end of her treatment. “She’s doing great,” Schonlau said. The family hopes to return home, resume school, and celebrate a festive Christmas together. Aiyla is scheduled for another MRI on January 16. “I would be lying if I told you I wasn’t nervous,” Schonlau admitted. “But we’re hopeful.” For Schonlau, it was one small observation that changed everything and may have saved her daughter’s life.
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