Cancer Patients’ “Stronger” Video Touches Kelly Clarkson, Entire World

An inspirational music video set to a Kelly Clarkson hit, made by the young leukemia patients at Seattle Children's Hospital, has taken the Internet by storm, thanks to a tweet from Kelly herself. And it's easy to understand why Kelly (and 1.4 million YouTube viewers, as of this writing) have been so emotionally moved by the clip, which manages to be both heartbreaking and joyful at the same time. As the ward's cancer-stricken children lip-synch and dance in their hospital rooms to "What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)" in the video, Kelly's lyrics take on poignant new meaning, as the pop song transforms from a simple breakup ode into a triumphant anti-cancer anthem.

The video, which is part of Seattle Children's creative arts program and was the idea of 22-year-old leukemia patient Chris Rumble, was uploaded to YouTube on May 6, and two days later, Kelly tweeted a link to it, raving: "Oh my goodness y'all have to see this! It's beautiful! I can't wait to visit these kids and nurses! It's Seattle Children's Hospital, I believe. God Bless y'all!" The video has exploded ever since, and Kelly even made her own follow-up video for the patients at Seattle Children's, to let them know how just much their video meant to her.

"It made my day. I know it's making everybody else's day online. Everybody's been watching it and everybody's talking to me about it, and it's so beautiful and so meaningful. Thank you so much for sharing it with us. I just can't wait to meet you. I think that was the coolest thing!" Kelly posted.

The hospital's Dr. Douglas Hawkins told the Associated Press that everyone at Seattle Children's has been thrilled by the response to the kids' "Stronger" video. "When a child or young adult is treated for cancer, it puts their whole life on hold in a way that doesn't seem fair at all," he said. "It's a fight for their life. But there are all these other normal things they want to be doing too, or things they want to focus on other than the medicine or the illness or their time in the hospital."

These children are true American idols--and proof that sometimes, music really can heal.

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