Blood cancer survivors have a unique path ahead of them—and that can feel challenging.
Questions come up: Does treatment mean I have to pause everything? Do I tell my friends or coworkers (and how)? With my medical bills, how can I afford the education I want?
To help make the last question a little more manageable, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) launched the LLS Scholarship for Blood Cancer Survivors. We’re in our fourth year of helping blood cancer survivors from all over the country pursue their educational goals.
These survivors’ goals are diverse and inspiring—to become doctors, physical therapists, cinema makeup artists, human rights advocates, and more. But they have something in common: the determination to make their educational dreams reality.
We sat down with a few of our past scholarship awardees to learn what they’ve been up to—and what they’re excited about as they look ahead.
Athlete Who’s Giving Back: Myles
When Myles submitted his scholarship application, he had just reached remission from acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and was easing back into high school. Now, more than a year later, he’s playing football on his college team. “Football is one of the biggest things in my life. Just being able to step on the field again was really a core moment,” he shares. That’s partly due, he says, to the LLS Scholarship for Blood Cancer Survivors: “Having that financial weight lifted really allowed me to get out of my dorm and go socialize.”
Myles is excited to dig deeper into classes, too—starting with Intro to Exercise Science. “I always wanted to be a trainer or physical therapist, but after I got sick and I had to go through physical therapy, it really boosted my interest,” he says.
As he goes after his own goals, he’s also thinking about ways to give back. A few years ago, Myles and his family started an initiative called Mission 6Strong, which raises funds to support pediatric cancer patients and their families at the clinic where he was treated. “We try to provide books, coloring books, toys to distract the kids,” he explains. “We also just did a backpack drive for back-to-school to take that off the families’ plates. It’s something I want to extend outside where I got treatment.”
Leader Creating Community: Reese
In December of 2023, Reese left the city of Memphis, where she’d been treated years before for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), for what she thought was the last time. “There were lots of confusing emotions attached,” she recalls. “I went through a tough thing for a 19-year-old.” She had no idea that she’d be back just a few months later—as the upcoming co-Director of Philanthropy for her college sorority.
“It all starts with the LLS Scholarship for Blood Cancer Survivors,” she says; “Without that, I wouldn’t have been able to join Greek life. I’m really excited to get my sorority and some patients and survivors involved, getting to know some faces.” That’s particularly important, she says, because of the isolation she faced coming out of blood cancer treatment. “I think it’s because people don’t realize there are so many of us,” she explains, “so I’m really trying to bring out that community, and make people see that survivors and patients are walking around every day, you just wouldn’t know.”
When she first applied, Reese was thinking about studying oncology. But after that December trip and the tough emotions that came with it, she’s pivoting to an interest she’s always had: education. “I love kids, and I have always thought about being a teacher,” she explains. “I’m so excited. Teachers are needed right now.”
Lab Pioneer in Training: Aaron
Aaron was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), an aggressive type of blood cancer, at just eight months old. Ever since, he’s been advocating for patients and survivors like him—speaking at schools in his region, fundraising at local sports games, and participating in LLS’s Student Visionaries of the Year.
That determination didn’t change when he got to his college campus. He dove into basic biology courses, as he plans to become an oncology researcher, and got to work bringing LLS to the school club roster. “We held one meeting the week before finals, and we were like, 'No one will show up for this,’” Aaron recalls. “We had almost fifty people come to our first meeting.”
Before he launches exciting plans for the LLS club this fall, Aaron’s finishing an internship at the National Cancer Institute working in CAR T-cell therapy, a type of treatment that uses the body’s own immune system to target cancer cells. “It’s just so amazing to me that somebody, somewhere, came up with this targeted kind of therapy that’s expanding so much,” Aaron shares. “It’s relatively new, but it’s come such a long way.”
Sports Enthusiast Going Transatlantic: Lydia
Lydia describes herself as a “big fitness person.” She thinks some of that passion stemmed from her childhood diagnosis of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). “It’s helped me appreciate having the ability to exercise and move my body,” she explains. And it’s led her to her current major: health and wellness.
Lydia’s picked up several sports over the years, including skiing, running, and weightlifting—the last one introduced to her by a dear friend who passed from brain cancer. She just got her cycle instructor certification, and at college, she’s on the track and cross-country teams. “Joining a sports team was a whole other experience of community,” she says. “It’s just where I found my people. I feel like my teammates are my family.”
She’s also looking forward to new horizons—literally. Thanks to the LLS Scholarship for Blood Cancer Survivors, Lydia will be able to study abroad in Florence, Italy next year. “Getting to have that experience is awesome,” she gushes. “I’m going to take my history requirement course there, which feels appropriate.”
