'Beloved' Fair Lawn Girl, 5, Dies After Battling Rare Cancer

FAIR LAWN, NJ — Sophie Spangenthal loved Mickey Mouse and Elmo. Deep dimples formed on her face when she smiled.

Spangenthal, 5, fought a 2-year battle against an enemy that many young children will never know: Cancer.

Spangenthal lost her battle Wednesday and died of Pleuropulmonary Blastoma, a rare form of lung cancer found in children. She was diagnosed Nov. 10, 2016, right before her third birthday.

Photos shared of Spangenthal show a smiling, energetic little girl, full of life, even while she was at the hospital receiving treatement.

"It is with profound sorrow and a heavy heart that we share the news that our beloved Sophie passed away earlier today," a post on the Love For Sophie Facebook page, which chronicled her fight.

Spangenthal's family said countless people called her "resilient, brave, and adaptable" she was while receiving treatment.

"We could not be more proud of her as an individual, and feel so lucky to have her teaching us what it truly means to live in the moment," a post on the family's blog said.

Spangenthal is survived by her parents, David and Jenny, brother J.J., and grandparents Joy and Bobby Greenblum and Cheryl and Selwyn Spangenthal.

A funeral service is Thursday at 1 p.m. at Schoem's Memorial Chapel in Paramus.

More than $17,000 has been donated to the family on GoFundMe and Chai Lifeline campaigns.

Email: daniel.hubbard@patch.com