TRENDING

Motivated, strong, passionate, and basketball-loving-- All words used to describe Lauren H., a 19-year-old from Greendale, Indiana. 

When she committed to play as a forward for Mount St. Joseph University’s basketball team, it was her dream come true. Sadly, the dream probably won’t last longer than December.

Lauren has terminal cancer and isn’t expected to live past the end of the year.

Last November, Lauren was unexpectedly diagnosed with Diffused Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG) after lingering symptoms of what had appeared to be a concussion. DIPG is a rare brain tumor that is unable to be removed, primarily affecting kids aged 5-10 years old. 90% of the victims don’t survive past 18 months after being diagnosed.

However, despite the grim diagnosis, Lauren hasn’t let it get her down. Instead, she’s used it as a chance to educate others about the disease and raise money to help others fighting. She also has continued to pursue her biggest dream: to play college basketball.

"It [basketball] definitely gives me something to look forward to and to live for," she said to Yahoo! Sports. "Playing basketball really helps me get my mind off things. The girls feed me energy. If I'm feeling down, they pick me up and help me keep going. They're kind of my fuel."

Lauren decided she didn’t want to let DIPG take control of her life. Despite fatigue, vertigo, loss of strength, severe headaches, nausea and loss of hand-eye coordination, Lauren battles on. She only missed a few games during her senior year of high school, playing while undergoing radiation and chemotherapy. She even taught herself to shoot left-handed because sometimes her right arm doesn’t have enough strength to control the ball.

She finished out her senior year season, graduated high school, committed to Mount St. Joseph’s to play on their Division III team and even attended almost every open gym session for the team during the fall, although her fatigue only allows her to play for a few minutes at a time before having to rest. She’s even living in a college dorm to get the full freshman experience.

"There are kids younger than I am with DIPG that I feel so sorry for," she said. "I've lived 19 years. These kids, they're living five."

The only problem is that the NCAA has regulations that college basketball season for Division III teams doesn’t start until mid-November. Mount St. Joseph’s first game of the season was scheduled for November 15th, a date that Lauren and her parents feared would be too late.

That’s when Lauren’s coach, Dan Benjamin, stepped in. He got an exemption from the NCAA that allowed him to move up the date of the game to November 2nd.

Although the two-week head start gives a better chance for Lauren to play, her parents still fear it might be too late. Her condition has been worsening, and she’s often unable to walk.

Still, Lauren remains positive that her dream to play college b-ball will come true, determined to stand with her team for the National Anthem and take the court until she has to be benched.

“The two things that have driven her are her dreams to play at the college level and to spread awareness about this ugly disease," her mother, Lisa, said. "If she accomplishes both, she goes out the way she wants to go out. That in itself is priceless.”

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