Sophie Isabella Ryan was born on October 3rd, 2012 weighing in at a whopping 9lbs 7.4oz. She was the picture of health, and everything her parents Tracy & Josh could have ever dreamt of. But when Sophie’s left eye began shaking when she was only 8 ½ months old, a series of doctor’s appointments led to an MRI that uncovered the unthinkable.
On June 23rd, 2013 Sophie was diagnosed with a low-grade brain tumor that luckily has a 90% survival rate, but unluckily has an over 85% recurrence rate. Even worse, the only option for these tumors was chemotherapy, with little to no developments made over the last forty years for kids stricken by ANY form of cancer.
After first completely dismissing cannabis as an option due to being stigmatized about the dangers around the plant, the Ryans stopped and took a second look when celebrity talk show host and movie star Ricki Lake, and her documentary film partner Abby Epstein were connected to them through social media. They told the Ryans about a film they were producing about kids using cannabis for cancer, now on Netflix titled Weed the People, and their lives forever changed.
When our co-founders Dr. Jewett and Tracy Ryan first met when Sophie was 6, it was Tracy's desperation to find a cure for her young daughter's brain tumor that caused them to cross paths. When Sophie required brain surgery to debulk her tumor, the Ryans saw this as an opportunity to get Sophie's live tissue into mice for a personalized clinical trial. Dr. Jewett immediately offered to help after hearing Sophie's story. But it was when she learned that she had been taking medical cannabis since she was 9 months old, and of her unexplainable healing, she became even more interested in learning more.
