About Adrienne
August 5th 2011
Adrienne Wilson was born in Birmingham, Alabama, on April 8, 1986. Since her father died before her birth and her mother worked long hours as a nurse at various hospitals, Adrienne spent most of her childhood with her older sister, Andrea, whom she affectionately called “Sissy.” In 1994, Adrienne began living with Andrea in Los Angeles. Andrea eventually became Adrienne’s legal guardian.
An honors student, Adrienne maintained a 4.0 GPA during her freshman year at Burbank High School. Well known for her artistic talent, Adrienne attended the Ragan Art Academy. Her artwork was displayed at three different galleries in Los Angeles. Adrienne also loved music, writing, and dance. She was a UCLA creative writing scholarship winner, and she was learning to play the bass when she became ill. During the summer of 2001, she was thrilled to meet Dave Navarro, the guitar player from her favorite band, Jane’s Addiction.
On May 16, 2001, Adrienne came home from school experiencing intense pain in her right side. Her sister, Andrea, rushed her to the ER, where tumors were discovered in her liver and lungs. Adrienne was diagnosed with primary liver cancer two days later.*
Despite the severity of her illness, Adrienne never lost hope:
“Cancer adds to the story of my individual life;
it adds to my character and my sense of humor.
Cancer blessed me…
it hasn’t cursed me.”
* Doctors later determined that Adrienne had chronic hepatitis B and C her entire life. She contracted hepatitis from her mother during childbirth. Children born to infected mothers rarely display symptoms until the hepatitis causes late complications such as cirrhosis or primary liver cancer.
To read more about Adrienne, please visit Adrienne’s Story on the Blue Faery website.
