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Lowering High White Blood Cell Counts

Some patients may have very high white blood cell (WBC) counts at the time of diagnosis. These elevated WBC counts can sometimes impair blood flow to the brain, lungs, eyes and other sites, and also cause damage in small blood vessels.

Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is a drug therapy that stimulates the immune system. Interferon, a type of immunotherapy, is a substance made naturally by the immune system, but it can also be made in the laboratory. Interferon reduces the growth and division of cancer cells.

MDS Subtypes

There are several kinds (subtypes) of MDS. The subtype is determined from the results of the blood and bone marrow tests.

The current WHO classification guidelines identify six subtypes.The current WHO classification guidelines, which were updated in 2022, groups MDS based on genetic abnormalities and morphologically defined features (the appearance and number of the cells under a microscope).

The subtypes are determined by the following:

Alice

In March 2023, while visiting my daughter and son-in-law in San Francisco, I saw the Hike2Cure trip to Patagonia listed on The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) website. They have always talked about their backpacking trip to Patagonia in Argentina and Chile as their favorite hiking trip ever. This event would be my 16th LLS fundraising adventure since going into remission from multiple myeloma (MM) in 1999. The year 2024 marks my 25th year of remission. I took the plunge and signed up for the 50-mile hike. It seemed like the right time to do an epic adventure.

Nina

Back in March 2015, my then 26-year-old daughter was not feeling well.  She had severe abdominal pain, overwhelming fatigue, night sweats, a low-grade fever, a headache, and appeared to be losing weight.  At the time, my daughter was working as a speech language pathologist in a hospital in Maryland.  She was misdiagnosed by an ER droctor and two months later, after her primary care doctor ordered an ultrasound, we found that she had innumerable tumors in her lungs and spleen.  We saw an oncologist the next day who ordered more blood work and a PET scan, as well as a bon

Dr. George Yagmour

Naomi

My story begins when I was 11 years old, and I remember it being the summer after my sixth-grade year. I had just made the volleyball team and was so excited about that and the upcoming school year. I don't know if you remember middle school, but it was a bit of an awkward time, so I was looking forward to getting older, becoming surer of myself, and making more friends. Unfortunately, at some point during the summer, I started to feel fatigued.

Options for Sperm Preservation

You may be able to take certain steps and precautions to preserve fertility before, during and after treatment. 

Volunteer

It all began in 2010 after my friend Cara and I ran the LA Marathon. We had already trained on our own for the 26.2 miles race. I thought, “Why not just keep running?” That’s when I found the nonprofit The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and their fundraising program called Team In Training (TNT)! TNT was the only program you could volunteer with to get a secured race entry into the San Francisco Nike Women's Marathon. So, I registered for an informational meeting at the mall near my parents' house, listened to the staff and coaches, as well as a survivor, and I was hooked.

Hardee

In April 2020, I was diagnosed with Stage 2 Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). My life was turned upside down after this diagnosis, and I was in extreme denial even months into my treatment. I was forced to go through six months of chemotherapy and two surgeries to treat it. Being diagnosed with cancer at the age of 20 in the midst of a pandemic taught me many things. One of the biggest things I learned is to never take anything for granted. One day I was a normal 20-year-old hanging out with my friends, and the next I was shaving off all my hair because of treatment.

Sudha

Sudha Bhatnagar moved from India to Massachusetts in 1979. Shortly after, she met her husband and moved to Pennsylvania. At the time, the company she worked for allowed her to work from home because they were based in Massachusetts. 

april

In 1996, at the age of 16, I found a lump in my neck that quickly grew to an alarming size. After ruling out illnesses such as cat scratch fever and tuberculosis, the lump was biopsied at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, TN and I was diagnosed with stage 2A Hodgkin's Disease (now called Hodgkin lymphoma). I went through 6 months of chemotherapy, followed by 2 months of radiation.

Jessica

Jess began volunteering with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) in February 2021. Jess is currently pursuing her Patient Advocacy Certificate and found an opportunity to join LLS as a volunteer to gain more experience working with the Patient and Community Outreach Department. Although she is a newer LLS volunteer, her journey to finding her passion for patient advocacy started seven years ago. In 2014, Jess was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). MDS is more common in men than in women.

Erica

By the time I was 32 years old, I was a 3-time cancer survivor. At 22 years old, I was diagnosed with MALT lymphoma, at a time (1999) when the doctors knew very little about it and believed it had only been found in men over the age of 80 in their stomach (mine was found in my neck).

Kassandra

Exactly a month before my 24th birthday, I was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). As a young adult, hearing the words “you have cancer” come from a physician’s mouth was earth-shattering, to say the least.

Prior to my diagnosis, I had been working in clinical research and was enrolled in a Biomedical Science Master’s program with hopes of continuing to medical school and becoming a physician. However, my career aspirations were placed on hold when I received my diagnosis. Immediately, my dedicated student lifestyle turned into one of a full-time patient.

Cayden

In April 2020, three-year-old Cayden began experiencing leg pain and developed an unusual limp that alarmed his mother, Courtney. Soon, the pain progressed to a stiff neck and loss of appetite. Just two weeks later, after multiple tests and doctor appointments, Courtney and her husband would hear the words that every parent fears, "your child has cancer". Cayden was diagnosed with a high-risk form of blood cancer, Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

Toben

Toben had entered preschool at 3½ years old, and within a few months, he was getting sick often. He started getting random fevers that would go away in a day. When he got leg and arm pains, we started to get concerned. The pains were so bad that he couldn't walk and would wince when we picked him up or moved him. At his four-year check-up, he wasn't showing any signs or symptoms, so we chalked it up to growing pains. Most of the summer he was fine, but by the end of July, the symptoms were stronger and lasted longer and longer.

Lincoln

In the fall of 2017, Lincoln was not feeling well and had typical cold virus symptoms. He also had a recurring fever and an unexplained rash. After two trips to the pediatrician, the doctor thought he had a persistent virus and then bronchitis. On our third visit, they thought he may have mono, so bloodwork was taken, and we were told to go to Children’s Hospital immediately. We were scared and had no idea what was wrong. Cancer was not even a thought.

Christine

Christine Attia knows first-hand how overwhelming and terrifying a blood cancer diagnosis can be. She lost her 27-year-old fiancé three years ago after a courageous six-month battle with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a blood cancer which has seen few improvements in treatments in more than 40 years.

Janie

I was first diagnosed with stage 4 diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) in December 2017. I got through Christmas very weak and started chemo the first week of January 2018. My son had given me a Winnie the Pooh stuffed animal that Christmas, so Winnie became my mascot and went with me to every chemo treatment for the entire six months. Everyone at my cancer center loved to hug Winnie. He is very soft! He was brave and strong, even when my doctor told us we needed to add two additional treatments to complete the dosage protocol.

Anna

I’m from Hungary. I’m 34 years old and just recently moved to Durango, Colorado, to marry my husband, Joe. For two years, we worked through a long-distance relationship during COVID and thought we would never face a tougher task in life than facing an uncertain future beset by travel restrictions, an eight-hour time difference, and thousands of miles. We wed in July, settled into our house we’d moved into in March, and I had just qualified for my work permit and landed a wonderful job as the Communications Specialist at a local non-profit.

Munira

I will never underestimate my parents' sacrifices to provide my siblings and me with the millions of opportunities we have due to their hard work. My parents were born and raised in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Both were born to families who instilled the traditional family value of grit in every walk of life. My parents both obtained a high school diploma with the intent of seeking higher education, but the obstacles of living in a developing country robbed them of the chance.

Jeffrey

My name is Jeff Kurowski and I am 35 years old.  I have lived with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) for two years and Crohn's disease (CD) for 20 years.  I have had three feet of my intestines removed.  I now depend on daily bowel suppression medication, monthly B12 shots, biologic therapy for a quality of life, and a daily targeted chemotherapy pill to stay alive.

Kris

Every survivor has a story. Mine started out on my way home from work one sunny June afternoon in 1983. My mom came to pick me up and we were riding in the car. I still remember the feeling of freedom as the wind blew through my long brown hair. Spring was always a season of rebirth to me after the long New York winters. I closed my eyes and smiled, completely unprepared to hear the next words spoken to me. “What’s that on your neck, honey”? Those words came from my mother as she noticed the lump embedded in my collarbone.

Kent

When Noah was born in 2005, we were surprised when the doctor told us he had Down syndrome.  Soon after, we were informed about all of the things that Noah wouldn’t or couldn’t do in his lifetime.  We were also given a laundry list of medical problems that he could potentially have.  Two months after he was born, Noah went into heart failure and had open heart surgery to correct four holes in his heart.  This was a tough time but boy did we have more to come and didn’t know it.  He has since had multiple surgeries, tests, studies, etc.  We were told that Noa