Several months ago, Candace Fisher got an uneasy feeling about the appearance of her baby girl's left eye. In some situations, it reflected light, like a cat's.

She mentioned it to the pediatrician, but the condition is so rare that few physicians know about it, says Derek Fisher, the Utah Jazz guard and Candace's husband. Tatum Fisher, their 10-month-old daughter, twin to son Drew, was in grave danger that few knew about.

The Fishers might not have discovered the real problem for some time except that the pediatrician they'd been seeing since Derek was traded to the Jazz last summer from Golden State wasn't in their insurance's "network," so the insurance rejected the bills.

"Things are planned, even though we don't know it," the religious Fisher said after Thursday's Jazz practice.

On May 2, Tatum was taken to a new pediatrician at University Hospital — Dr. Katie McElligott — and when Candace mentioned the eye, McElligott suspected it was retinoblastoma, a rare and deadly cancerous tumor in the eyes of children.

"She sent us to an ophthalmologist to confirm it, but she'd seen it before," Fisher said.

"What are the chances of us switching doctors, and the first time we see the doctor, she picks up on it? Probably saves my daughter's life. We would have gone on for months more not knowing what that was."

The Fishers early this week flew to New York for a second-opinion consultation with Dr. David H. Abramson, chief of ophthalmic oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. "The doctors we saw in New York are on the cutting edge," Fisher said.

A new surgical procedure to inject chemotherapy directly into the tumor to hopefully shrink it to the point it might be removed in a few months was performed early Wednesday at New York Presbyterian Hospital by Dr. Y. Pierre Gobin of France.

The procedure may enable Tatum to keep her eye, although if the tumor doesn't shrink within three such treatments, the eye may have to be removed to save her life.

"They've done nine cases," Fisher said. "(In) one case the child's arterial structure wasn't strong enough, but the other eight kids that had the treatment, all of their tumors have reduced in size."

Twin brother Drew was also examined in New York, and he is fine.

Fisher said Tatum is doing well, and the eye isn't even red or swollen. She returned with her family to Utah via private jet just hours after the procedure was completed Wednesday.

New attention

Fisher received international praise for the inspirational way he returned, exhausted, to EnergySolutions Arena in the third quarter of Wednesday's Game 2 of the NBA Western Conference semifinals against his former team. He eventually hit the 3-point shot that put the game out of Golden State's reach, as well as making two free throws in a 127-117 Jazz win in overtime. He also made a defensive stop on old teammate Baron Davis with 27 seconds left in regulation to help the Jazz come from five points down to force the overtime.