by Trisha Ingalls
TROY — The daily routine in the Racicot household in Troy looks a little different from a typical young family’s. Two-year-old daughter Aurora was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis (CF) when she was only six days old.
Cystic fibrosis is a progressive, genetic disease that affects the lungs, pancreas, and other organs. According to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, there are close to 40,000 children and adults living with cystic fibrosis in the United States (and an estimated 105,000 people have been diagnosed with CF across 94 countries). CF can affect people of every racial and ethnic group.
The disease causes thick mucous that clogs certain organs such as the lungs, pancreas, and intestines. This may cause malnutrition, poor growth, frequent respiratory infections, breathing problems, and chronic lung disease.
Aurora’s mother, Monica Racicot, told the Chronicle that since 2010, the U.S. has offered newborn screening for CF, which is how Aurora was diagnosed so early.
“I got the dreaded call from her pediatrician three days after leaving the hospital saying she was flagged for it,”…
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