Search Results
Greysun
Hi! My name is Greysun! I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) on March 23, 2011. I was fortunate to get outstanding medical treatment at UNC Children's Hospital and the cancer center. I have been through many rounds of chemo followed by up to six weeks of hospitalization after each one. I have had radiation to my brain followed up by my first bone marrow transplant.
Disease- and Treatment-Related Pain
People with cancer can have pain caused by the cancer itself, its treatment, or both. They may also have pain caused by other health problems that are unrelated to cancer (like arthritis or diabetes).
Increased pain does not mean that the cancer is getting worse, but you should always tell your healthcare team if you have increased pain.
It’s important to remember that no matter what the cause, pain can be treated.
Anne
My story with leukemia began in July 2016 when I was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). It was four months and 13 days after my wedding to my husband Eddie, and one month to the day after our vow renewal ceremony. What we didn’t realize at the time was that my body had likely been fighting for months. I thought my exhaustion was from wedding planning and running my writing business.
Marie
In early 2017 we found out my husband Miguel had non-Hodgkin's lymphoma diffuse large B-cell. It was the most frightening and overwhelming time of our lives. To this day I am amazed at how we got through it.
Kay and David LaFrance
As an 18-year breast cancer survivor, Kay was just starting to enjoy retirement in 2018 when she was diagnosed with mantle cell lymphoma. Even though she had fought cancer before, she was stricken with despair and disbelief and felt terrified of the road ahead of her. She had to travel to a different city to receive her specialized treatment, which was outside of her insurance network, so much of the costs came out of her own pocket. After a long, hard fight, she is now in remission, but lives with the everyday fear of her cancer coming back.
Amanda
My name is Amanda, and I am a stage 4b classical multicellularity Hodgkin lymphoma (CHL) survivor. It all started after spring break of my junior year of high school. I was on a ski trip when I noticed my feet were more itchy than normal. I figured it was from the boots. After coming home and realizing it had gotten worse, we went to the pediatrician. She looked at the bruises and scratch marks on my legs and diagnosed me with scabies. I did the whole treatment for that, and obviously, it didn’t work. A week or two later. we went back and had some basic bloodwork done.
Allie
When I was in fourth grade, back in 2015, my older brother Nate (a freshman in high school at the time) was rushed down by ambulance to the U of M Masonic Children’s Hospital. His spleen was holding 10x the normal amount of red blood cells. This led to the discovery of his cancer. He was later diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML).
Armaan
In January 2014, Armaan celebrated his 5th birthday. He was tested for anemia a few days later at the urging of his pediatrician as he looked a little pale. Our world was rocked several hours later when the pediatrician called to notify us that Armaan had leukemia.
Armaan was immediately admitted into Lucile Packard Children's Hospital in Stanford where he had a PICC line inserted into his arm and started his first round of chemotherapy. He is now in remission although he faces two more years of treatment to help ensure he doesn't relapse.
Janet
I support LLS because leukemia and lymphoma has impacted my family. On Mother’s Day in 2006, my cousin's six year-old daughter, Sydney was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). After a year of fighting so hard, Sydney passed away.
The doctors at the New York Hospital were amazed and acknowledge that because Sydney did not give up and she fought such a painful battle, she had done so much for the advancement of research in leukemia.
Art
I was living in San Jose and had gone walking with a friend in a local park that followed the stream. It was December 15, 2006. Tom noticed that I had difficulty climbing up the five-foot stream embankment that the path went through. I myself didn’t recall this. Ten days later while visiting my wife’s children in Fairfax, the children and I went on a trail as we always did on Christmas morning. I found myself badly winded and returned to their home while they continued the hike. Then I noticed that I was not attracted to the Christmas feast.
Paul & Lynn
In 2017, after 44 years of working in the railroad industry, Paul Sauter was just starting to enjoy his retirement, when his health started to decline out of nowhere. Typically, he was in extremely good shape and enjoyed long hikes with his wife, Lynn. One day, while on a mountain climb trip in Arizona, Lynn was concerned when she noticed Paul was not his usual athletic self. When he was unable to get out of bed because of severe back pain, she knew something wasn’t right.
Shameel
Telling a child that they have cancer and explaining what that means is one of the most difficult conversations you can have with your child.
Shameel was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) at age 7. As a mother, I couldn't imagine my young, courageous boy, who appeared happy and healthy, not being able to do stuff like tennis, ice skating, piano, and swimming, which he enjoyed and had mastered. It was very shocking to me, and I was in denial for almost a month as cancer does not run in our family.
Yolanda
As many people were afraid to go to the doctor I was propelled to have a colonoscopy due to the death of Chadwick Bozeman. That decision changed my life. In December 2020, I was diagnosed with Stage 4 Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) is a type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma at age 44. Here I was amid a pandemic, just celebrating Christmas and ringing in the New Year as a newly diagnosed cancer patient. Like many people diagnosed with cancer, my first thought was, “I’m going to die.” I thought I’d die before seeing my daughter grow up.
Christie
Today I am celebrating one year of being a CML survivor! With my initial diagnosis, I wondered what did a person with CML look like? I immediately began to consider my final days of life with making edits to a living will, securing a cancer life insurance policy and making sure my mother would be well taken care of.
A couple of weeks later, unbeknown to me that I would come face to face with a renowned preacher, who looked me in the eyes and told me with a strong abrasive voice, “Cancel Your Plans To Die!” While I didn’t expect this profound order, I did take heed.
Mateo
Our Journey On June 26 2013, at six years old, Mateo was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Our world was completely upside down since that night. Our hearts shattered when we processed the words "your child has cancer ".
Robert
In 1990, I was diagnosed with M3 acute myeloid leukemia (AML) - now known as acute promyelocytic cancer (APL) - when I was a twenty-year-old college student studying abroad in Northern England.
I had ignored obvious symptoms for about a week leading up to my diagnosis, and it took another full week just to coordinate my departure from the UK to the University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle, not far from where I grew up. A host of complications followed during my first round of induction chemotherapy including massive amounts of internal bleeding.
Sal
Meet Sal. Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Survivor. Florida. Sal was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) before his daughter Olivia celebrated her first birthday. After multiple courses of treatment proved unsuccessful, he underwent a bone marrow transplant in September 2011. Now, almost three years later, Olivia is almost 5 and her Daddy is celebrating his "three-year post-transplant birthday"! Sal is healthy and strong - and has the energy to play and laugh with her. Most beautiful of all, he can now dream of being at her side for all kinds of birthdays to come.
Makenzie
My daughter Makenzie was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) in January 2013, when she was just four years old. She had no signs or symptoms of leukemia. One day, Makenzie had a sore throat and we made an appointment with her pediatrician. Turns out she did have strep throat, but an exam also revealed her spleen was very enlarged. At that point, her pediatrician did bloodwork and learned that Makenzie's white cell count was through the roof. We were sent to Texas Children’s Hospital where later that evening she was diagnosed with CML.
Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a cancer of the bone marrow and the blood that progresses rapidly without treatment. AML mostly affects cells that aren’t fully developed, leaving these cells unable to carry out their normal functions. It can be a difficult disease to treat; researchers are studying new approaches to AML therapy in clinical trials.
Charlie
At two and a half years old, Charlie was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
Soon after being diagnosed, she underwent surgery to insert a port-a-cath so she could receive chemotherapy treatments and make route blood work easier on her. Chemotherapy treatments were extremely hard on her little body and she refused to walk. She had neuropathy from the treatments.
Tessa
Tessa surprised our family when she came rockin' an extra chromosome. She spent 11 days in the NICU and left with oxygen but seemed in good health otherwise. When Tessa turned 18 months old, she became very sick. She had multiple infections that wouldn't go away, became lethargic, and wasn't her cheerful self anymore. After a blood test, her pediatrician suspected leukemia. More tests confirmed Tessa had acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). She went through chemotherapy for two and a half years and finished treatment in May 2020.
Sherri
I have donated to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) for many years. This year I wanted to do more in honor and loving memory of my dad, Frederick.