Search Results

Types of Treatment

The factors that will determine your treatment regimen may include:

Lorelai

I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) when I was 11. Throughout my entire cancer journey, I had a lot of people in my corner. But what I found most helpful was following The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) social media platforms and reading the articles on their website. Through LLS, I felt like someone actually understood what I was going through. Recently, I have been one of the very lucky students chosen to receive the LLS Scholarship for Blood Cancer Survivors which will be the reason I am able to continue attending college.

Margot

I lost my father at age 53 to acute myeloid leukemia (AML) after a hard 13-month battle. I want to get involved with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) to spread awareness around leukemia and other blood cancers, to hopefully help other patients and loved ones going through this. My brother, Jack Austin, has run 2 marathons under the team "Running for Rob" and has fundraised over $10K for LLS. I want to get involved and fundraise to not only spread awareness and support to those dealing with this dreadful disease.

Loriana

In January 2014, award-winning health and fitness journalist, Loriana Hernandez-Aldama was shocked to learn that she had acute myeloid leukemia (AML). She received the diagnosis from her fertility doctor, who she had seen just days before to do a precautionary blood test for an embryo transfer. Instead of planning for a new baby, Loriana had to begin treatment for cancer.

Shortly after her diagnosis, Loriana said goodbye to her two-year-old son and boarded a plane to another state to begin chemotherapy.

River

I was diagnosed in late February 2023 with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL). I had 810,000 white blood cells that were all cancerous. I have made a recovery, but I’m still in the process of recovering. I’ve met amazing people along the way. I have around two years left of treatment at the Children’s Hospital of Michigan. I still think of this whole experience as amazing because of all the people I met and all the things I’ve gotten to do such as my Make-A-Wish trip to Nintendo World in Los Angeles.

Renee

I was a senior in high school preparing to graduate. I had summer plans to work at my youth group camp and endless ideas for my future. That all came crashing down on May 27, 2002, when I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). AML is a rare and rapidly growing cancer of the bone marrow that destroys the production of normal blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets. At the time of my diagnosis, my family was given devastating odds that only a miracle could fix. I was so dangerously sick that I needed multiple transfusions immediately, and that was just the beginning.

Graysen

Graysen was born in March 2017. She was born the day before my birthday and we often say that she was the greatest birthday present ever. She was such an easy-going baby - happy, curious, and sweet with a magnetic personality. She was seemingly healthy, happy and 21 months old when we shockingly learned she had leukemia in November 2018. It was a diagnosis we never saw coming and one we were forced to simultaneously digest, navigate and hit head on.

Mackenzie

I am a recipient of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) 2022-2023 Dreamers and Doers Scholarship for Blood Cancer Survivors.

I was initially diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) at age 4, and after a successful two years of treatment, I went into remission. Unfortunately, at age 8, I relapsed. I am now 19 years old and a sophomore at McDaniel College. I am majoring in biology. I’m also a part of the honors program, and I play NCAA Division III Tennis.

Jacqueline

It’s been five years since my daughter was diagnosed with stage ¾ Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). She had just graduated college, and she had a lump on her right clavicle area. We went to the doctor, and then it all started, from CT scans to biopsy to telling us that it would be six months of chemo, and that’s it.

Jill

My world changed forever in April 2021. Life was going so well . . . I was 35 years old, my kids Henry (9), Olivia (7), and Ruby (5) were getting excited about summer break (and all the trips we had planned), my insurance business was in full swing, and all my plants and flowers were in bloom. I was doing what I loved most, working in the yard, when I noticed my right pinky finger was going numb, and I began having trouble walking. We immediately went to the ER. The doctors initially thought it was a stroke, but luckily a fantastic neurosurgeon was on call and saw the MRI.

Yaneiry

Certain things come into your life to show you how strong you are. Life is so fragile, and we don’t know if we will be here on this earth in the future. This process shows me that the most important thing in life is having health and making beautiful memories with loved ones. 

Ryan

At 22 years old, I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). My first hospitalization was a month long which was followed by four more hospital stays for my chemotherapy treatments. In between each of those hospitalizations were home nursing visits, blood transfusions, doctor’s appointments, and even more hospitalizations to treat potentially life-threatening infections. I lost a total of 40 pounds throughout those months. Despite the many struggles I encountered during those months, I was able to successfully complete my treatments.

Ariel

I was diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) on January 24, 2019. I hadn’t been feeling well for a while. I was having very odd symptoms. For example, I was having joint pains, I kept hearing this whooshing noise, my gums were bleeding, and the biggest symptom was I would get out of breath so easily. Walking up the steps of my apartment building felt like running a marathon. I went to an urgent care clinic and described these symptoms, and the doctor gave me an antibiotic and sent me home. I’ll never forget his face before he discharged me. I could see he was unsure.

Drew

One thought that never crossed my mind as a parent was the fear of a cancer diagnosis for my five year old son.

A few months shy of his 6th Birthday, Drew had very typical cold symptoms, but they were persistent and he was extremely fatigued.  After a two visits to his primary care physician, come over the counter medicines and finally a trip to Urgent care, we had a lot of questions but no answers.  My husband took him to his primary care Dr on Monday and we insisted on a blood test. 

Kendra

I first learned of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) when I participated in a Team in Training (TNT) event to walk a half marathon in San Francisco in October 2004. My friend in Michigan had lost her dad to lymphoma earlier that year, and she was training for the event from her home in Michigan. My training and participation were a way to support her during the loss of her dad. I never thought I could walk that far, and, through the support of the trainers and the motivation to support my friend, I had an awesome time completing that walk.

Zoraa

Being a cancer survivor was never on my bucket list.

Dylan

I was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) the summer of 2017, right before the start of my junior year in high school. Due to slow immune recovery after chemotherapy, I experienced many delays in treatment. By spring of the following year, I had a CNS and marrow relapse, requiring me to have a life-saving bone marrow transplant in June of 2018. Following the transplant, my body struggled to produce enough T-cells, which put me in medical isolation for the entirety of my senior year in high school.

Mia

As Mia started her third grade year at elementary school she began complaining of pain in her legs. At first, her mom just thought it was normal growing pains. But then Mia started sleeping a lot more, lost her appetite and just didn’t have her normal level of energy. Mia’s parents, Alma and Ernesto, decided it was time to take her to the doctor.

Acute Myeloid Leukemia

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.

Amanda

"He was selfless, unbelievably selfless," said Amanda about her father, Andrew. "He did everything for everybody. He worried enough for our family plus more. And never showed it. He worked extremely hard to provide us with everything we could possibly need." 

Shelley

I went from being in the best shape of my life to battling cancer in only a few short months.

Three years ago, I made the choice to change my lifestyle, and I lost 100 lbs., which I can honestly say has saved my life. Prior to my cancer diagnosis, I was sharing my weight loss journey online to help others make positive choices. Little did I know that I was about to fight the biggest battle of my life!

Zeena

As an oblivious 14-year-old, I never imagined that I would soon go through the most difficult journey of my life. While on summer vacation with my family, we quickly realized I was not my energetic, joyous self. My favorite activities seemed like energy-draining tasks, and my large appetite had suddenly disappeared. The once quick trip up the stairs turned into a painful trek up a mountain and a walk down the street to a treacherous marathon with no end.

Lyndi

In March 2019 I began feeling off...I didn't know what it was. I thought perhaps it was a loss of relationship that broke me to my core, or that fact that an old friend had asked me to be kidney donor for someone I had never know. I agreed to be tested to see if I was a possible match. Fast forward to October when I was tested a possible blood clot that had formed from all of this. I was having continual pain in my right shoulder blade.

Complications of CLL or CLL Treatment

People with CLL are more likely to get infections.  

Nathaniel

In 2015 at just 15 months old, Nathaniel started to get sick on a regular basis. He started running a fever and his blood count was really low and we pushed for answers when he wasn't getting better until we were told to go to the Children's Hospital. He was extremely pale, wouldn't eat, and lethargic at this point.