A rising star learns to laugh again

SHELLY LEACHMAN, NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER

December 7, 2005 1:29 AM

Serena Castanon wants to be a star. She had head shots before her second birthday and as a toddler was cast in a Kodak commercial. But Serena never appeared in the ad -- she was diagnosed with cancer before filming began.

"It was March 6, 2002," mom Francine said of the day she learned her daughter had leukemia. "Those are days you don't forget."

Serena, now 6, has been in remission since 2004. She's doing so well she's no longer receiving treatment. But she still makes monthly trips from her Oxnard home to Santa Barbara for regular checkups at Cottage Hospital. That's where the Castanons first heard of the Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation, which offers financial aid and moral support to families of cancer patients at Cottage.

One of two charities named as recipients of the annual News-Press Holiday Fund, the foundation provides grants to approved families for rent or mortgage payments, car payments or vehicle maintenance costs and utility bills. It also offers financial planning advice, support groups, care packages for patients' families and hotel accommodations, and often hosts social events for cancer-stricken families.

One of Serena's two dogs -- a beagle puppy she named Lou -- came courtesy of the foundation, which also includes the Castanons in social outings from baseball games to barbecues to amusement-park excursions. The group and its founder, executive director Nikki Simon, have been a major morale booster for the family, Francine said.

The Castanons live on a quiet street in Oxnard , a school on one corner, a church on another. Christmas lights adorn the white-trimmed windows of their simple blue house, where a snowman hangs slightly askew on the front door.

Inside, high-energy, long-locked Serena chases puppy Lou and Chihuahua Ling-Ling around the living room like it's the Ken tucky Derby, squealing with laughter as she falls down and lets the dogs crawl all over her. It's hard to believe she's the same girl who two years ago was bald from chemotherapy, often isolated at home to protect her from germs and, her mom said, was sometimes "screaming in pain" from the cancer coursing through her.

"It wasn't until we got a dog that she started laughing like that," Francine said. "She didn't laugh anymore after she got sick."

When she was still just 2 years old, Serena's parents began seeing on their daughter some strange bruises and "red dots all up and down her arms," recalled father Jesus.

The diagnosis came quickly, and Serena was soon living full time at Cottage Hospital, where her parents slept beside her in shifts. Francine worked early hours in Ventura ; Jesus, who left his job to focus on Serena, attended school at night after his wife returned to the hospital.

"One of us had to quit work," Francine said. "He made more money, but my health insurance was better. That made the decision for us."

Serena's treatment varied from the norm. She's part of a clinical trial that provides higher doses of approved cancer drugs to treat the entire body, not just the area affected by cancer, according to Francine.

Serena's participation in the study will last until she turns 30, Francine said, when she'll have her final checkup.

By that time, wide-eyed Serena may easily be the performer she dreams of becoming. She's already had a taste of celebrity. Shortly after finishing chemotherapy, she spent a day on a Culver City movie set with Jennifer Lopez, thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Her visit -- and her picture -- was featured in an August 2004 issue of US Weekly magazine.

"We spent the whole day on set and Serena never got tired," Francine said. "They sang and danced together, and every time they touched up J-Lo's makeup, they did (Serena's), too. She loved it. A limo brought us home and my husband had to pull her out, kicking and screaming. She didn't want to get out."

e-mail: sleachman@newspress.com