Memorial services were held this weekend in the Chicago area for Andrew Zint, a freshman in the College of Engineering who died April 1.
Zint, 19, battled pediatric brain cancer for nearly five years. According to the Daily Herald, Andrew was diagnosed with a medulloblastoma, which accounts for 15 to 20 percent of pediatric brain tumors, during his sophomore year at Buffalo Grove High School in Buffalo Grove, Ill. He tried five different clinical trials since then, including one last fall that forced him to withdraw midway through the semester.
In lieu of flowers, his family is asking for donations to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Bear Necessities Pediatric Cancer Foundation or the Neuro-oncology Research Fund. In October 2011, the Make-A-Wish Foundation arranged a trip to Rome for the Zint family, during which Andrew received a personal blessing by Pope Benedict XVI in St. Peter’s Square.
He is survived by his mother, Susan, father, Anthony, and his sister Emily.