EDMOND, Okla. (KFOR) – When you ask 9-year-old Daphne Hinkle of Edmond about her favorite things, the list is long. 

“I can kiss him and I can rock him like a baby,” says Daphne as she cuddles the family’s Siamese kitty.  

She loves her pets, her friends, and her brother, and don’t forget her stuffed animals.

“I love to sleep with them,” she says with a shy grin.

You could say this Edmond girl’s enthusiasm for life is what helped her become a cancer survivor.

When she was 6 years old, her dad began to Google a growing list of her symptoms. She was pale with a rash and red eyes. She also had a limp. 

“So of course, when I typed in all her symptoms, including limping, leukemia came up,” says Daphne’s dad, Bobby Hinkle, “So I called the doctor and I said, ‘Have we done a CBC?'”

Daphen’s blood tests confirmed her parents’ fears, acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

“It was a dark road you don’t have a choice or option,” recalled Bobby. “You have to trust the team and do the next thing in the process they give you.”

That process took the Hinkles to OU Children’s Hospital and Jimmy Everest Cancer Center.

“I was thankful they were near us and gave us peace of mind,” says Daphne’s mom, Christi.

“We were definitely impressed with the teams there,” Bobby adds.

Daphne couldn’t agree more, talking about her favorite nurse.

Despite some life-threatening infections and weeks in the hospital, Daphne always found reasons to smile.

“I had my birthday there!” she recalls with a smile. 

She loved the therapy dogs and loved to pose for pictures even when her hair started falling out. She always made time to dote on her brother. 

“It was more often me that was crying, and Daphne saying it was OK,” says Bobby Hinkle.

Her mom nods, saying, “She always rolls with the punches, just went along with whatever they told her, like it’s not that big of a deal.”

That cloud of uncertainty from 2020 has lifted. Daphne’s treatment plan is two and a half years long, but this busy 3^rd grader is in remission and back in the swing of life. 

Her dad sums it up with “She’s always been a remarkable little human.” 

If you’d like to help kids like Daphne fight cancer, consider donating to JECFriends.org.