I lost my mom to acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in 2003. Her battle was short, just three months, which left me in shock and feeling very angry. My mom had always instilled in me the value of working hard to accomplish goals and I knew she wouldn’t want me wasting energy being angry.
I was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 1995, just several months after my husband was required to go on dialysis for polycystic kidneys. We had three very young children then and my only chance of survival was to have an allogeneic bone marrow transplant, which at the time was considered experimental.
I am a cancer survivor and my story starts in the summer of 1999. On June 9, an MRI revealed a tumor the size of a golf ball in my brain. A biopsy showed it to be a primary central nervous system non-Hodgkin lymphoma. I remember this date vividly because it was my wife’s birthday and she had to break the news to me. This marked the beginning of our journey.
Cassie Fetsch is a regular volunteer for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Minnesota chapter. When school is out, staff members can count on Cassie to be in the office folding letters, stuffing and labeling envelopes, counting Team In Training brochures, cleaning out drawers or putting together pizza boxes.
Aaron was taken to urgent care after he developed a rash that didn't seem right. The next day, he was admitted into The Children's Hospital, and 36 hours later he was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
Kylie Lynn Branch was diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) on January 22, 2015, just two days before her second birthday.
This is in memory of our "Papa" Samuel Lee Garcia, Jr. Sam was a unique kind of soul. He always did for others before himself. He was so giving and kind, the most genuine type of person. And although he is resting now, I believe it was his time to go.
Hi! Nathaniel here, but you can call me Nate. I am an 18-year-old North Carolina Scholar, 2015 graduate of Franklinton High School who graduated with high honors. I am a future student of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, majoring in mechanical engineering.
D'Nya was six years old when she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). That day in 2009 was the scariest moment of our lives.
I do not aspire to be a hero, I just want other patients to realize that any one of us can have a long life after receiving such a horrible diagnosis. Times may be difficult but anything is possible.