Inspirational Stories

I am a native of Birmingham, Alabama. I have a daughter who is a psychiatrist at the University of Maryland. I have two grandchildren, ages three and seven. Along with surviving myeloma, which I was diagnosed with in 2015, I am also a cancer survivor of a meningioma (tumor) in the left hemisphere of the brain, which was diagnosed in 1993.

I received this treatment until November 2016. My immune system began to reject the chemo that I was receiving, and I went into remission. In December 2016, my doctor was coordinating a clinical trial that he thought that I would be a good candidate for. I was enrolled in the study in 2017, and within approximately six weeks I went into remission and have been in remission ever since. I was receiving this regimen until June 2018, and when I received my last treatment, I rung the bell to signal the end of my treatment.

To others dealing with cancer, just know that it’s not a death sentence. Don’t focus on what your life would have been like, and don’t stop living because you have been diagnosed with cancer, because you can live with it. Continue to do what the doctors suggest, take your medications, and do the chemotherapy treatments. I have a saying, “I have cancer, but cancer doesn’t have me.” In other words, don’t let cancer control your life.