Search Results
William
Hi, my name is William Yank and I am a 23-year-old, three-time leukemia survivor from Indiana. My story begins at the end of my junior year of college. I had just secured an internship in Washington D.C and was excited to finally spend a summer on my own. The summer started off pretty rough. I struggled to find affordable housing in D.C, I had no idea how the transportation system worked, and food was twice as expensive as compared to Indiana. Not to mention, I was only 20-years-old having fun was next to impossible.
Melanie
I beat stage 4 lymphoma last year after six months of aggressive chemotherapy. Honestly, I wasn't given much information from my centers, but The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) reached out to me to inform me about all the aid and grants they offer to help those going through cancer. Their representative stayed on the phone with me for over 40 minutes and was one of the most helpful people. When you're going through cancer with very little education, EVERYONE helps.
Dr. Adams
Jerry M. Adams, Ph.D., leads an LLS Specialized Center of Research grant.
His team is investigating apoptosis, the nature process of cell death. When apoptosis goes wrong it can lead to proliferation of cancer cells. It cells fail to die when they are supposed to they can develop into leukemia, lymphoma or multiple myeloma, and become more resistant to treatment. To improve treatment, the team is studying new drugs, used either alone or in combination with other therapies, to flip on the cell death switch.
Erica
As you can see, she's the beauty in the grey sweatshirt, mi amor. My daughter Erica survived leukemia, she was diagnosed when she was only two years old.
I'm the blessed momma that gets to celebrate this amazing woman of courage, who is now 28 years old!
Thanks to her awesome team at children's Hospital of Denver and the numerous supporters along the way. You’ve made the celebration of an important life possible.
Blessings, Erica’s mom, Rhonda Lee Salazar.
Kevin
In 2011, I was given two months to live after I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
I had to stay at the Bone Marrow Transplant Center at the Salt Lake City Hospital for a very long time and undergo a very hard fight.
My aortic valve failed this year from the chemo, but I had open heart surgery in May 2017 and I am grateful to be alive!
I live in honor to all that passed in our family and those who are still fighting blood cancer.
Steven
I have a rare blood cancer. It is Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia (WM), a type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), but some doctors say it has the same characteristics as POEMS syndrome.
I have very painful neuropathy, and it affects my legs and feet to the point that some days I cannot walk.
I have a spinal cord stimulator with the battery implanted in my back.
I am thankful to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) for my grants and all the other assistance, especially through this COVID pandemic.
CML in Children and Young Adults
Most cases of CML occur in adults. From 2012 to 2016, approximately 2 percent of all cases of CML occurred in children, adolescents and young adults less than age 20.
Stem Cell Transplantation
For certain patients with CML, allogeneic stem cell transplantation (the infusion of donor stem cells into a patient) is their best treatment option. However, this type of transplant can cause serious or even life-threatening complications and side effects. In addition, it is often not a good option for older patients or for patients who have other health problems.
Long-Term and Late Effects of Treatment
While treatments for ALL have led to increased survival rates, some may cause significant long-term or late effects. Long-term effects of cancer treatment are medical problems that last for months or years after treatment ends. Late effects are medical problems that do not appear until years, or even possibly decades, after treatment ends.
The long-term and late effects of childhood ALL treatment can include:
Side Effects
Therapy for CLL sometimes produces side effects. Side effects from kinase inhibitor drugs and monoclonal antibody therapy are generally milder than side effects from chemotherapy.
For most patients, treatment side effects are temporary and go away once therapy ends. For other patients, side effects can be more severe, sometimes requiring hospitalization. Some patients never have side effects.
Michael
In 1995, Michael’s daughter Carley was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), M-7 – a rare form of blood cancer – at just two and a half years old. For the following year, Michael and his wife, Liz, practically lived at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego while Carley underwent heavy chemotherapy treatment.
Myra
At age 2, Myra began having fevers and joint pain. Her parents took her to their pediatrician where she had bloodwork done. The results came back normal except it showed she was a little anemic.
“Myra never had any bruising or any issues other than the recurring fever,” according to her father.
Zainab
I'll never forget the call I received on April 17, 2017, when my then-three-year-old niece, Zainab, was diagnosed with leukemia. At the time, she was a bubble-blowing, pose-striking, diva princess. But for the next 2½ years, she became a tiny superhero whose mission was slaying the evil villain cancer. I've always felt a special connection to Zainab starting from the day she was born ― on my birthday, which I also happen to share with my younger sister Noura.
Mollie
Although I was a cancer patient many years ago, survivorship is a journey I take every day. Ever since my diagnosis, I’ve spent my free time engaging with the childhood cancer community and learning more about myself.
Laniya
I was truly blessed to be introduced to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society by workers from Duquesne Light Company as well as my daughter, Ebony Jennings who works as a customer service representative for Duquesne Light Company in Pittsburgh PA. First, I must boast about my granddaughter, Laniya S. White, because she’s a TRUE fighter and never allowed lymphoma to define her.
Louis
Louis had been on a journey to achieve greater health. For 10 months, he had been on a healthy diet and exercise program and had lost 80 pounds. His doctors were pleased and he was able to stop taking most medications he was on. However when he went for an annual physical he was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) at only the age of 33.
Carley
Hi, my name is Carley and I am an angel. I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in 1995 and I died in 1996. I was 3 ½ years old when I died and I tried so hard to live, but AML was just so terrible and there weren’t a lot treatments back then. My parents were so sad when I went to heaven. I’m still 3 ½ years old because up here in heaven we stay the same age and none of us are sick anymore. It’s truly wonderful up here, but there are still way too many of you coming up here from earth because of AML.
Matthew
In September, 2012, Dr. Matthew Levine noticed that his regular exercise routine and rotations in the ER were more physically draining than usual. When Dr. Levine realized he could no longer run a mile like he used to with ease, he contacted his physician.
In the interim, Dr. Levine began developing bruises on his body and a throat infection. He knew that after the testing, the diagnosis would not be good. On Monday, September 17, 2012. Dr. Levine learned he had acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
Michael
My story is not so unlike many others. In May 2005, just two months after I retired, I was looking forward to the start of a terrific period of my life spending time with my family, traveling, relaxation and golf That's when I got that dreaded call: “Mr. Blackman, you need to come into my office. We need to talk.”
Ashley
I had acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) in 2013. I went in to have surgery to remove all four of my wisdom teeth and never stopped bleeding after surgery. The doctor called those miracle teeth instead of wisdom teeth because that is how we found out I had leukemia and they saved my life.
The first few weeks were very difficult in the hospital and my life was literally turned upside down in the blink of an eye. I was a single mom of two young daughters and it was so hard for them to understand how I was suddenly so sick.
Russ
(As told by Russ Parker’s wife Karen A. Parker) In the fall of 2004, Russ was looking forward to a surfing trip to Fiji with his son Rusty and a group of good friends. He was a real estate developer, surfer, soccer coach, swimmer and runner.
Jared
At 31, I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). As my career was finally taking off as a celebrity makeup artist and I finally felt “grown-up,” it came to a screeching halt. My life became cancer and getting better. Although I struggled with the isolation, I connected with many other patients via social media.
Daniel
My children and I lost their mother and my wife in March 2008, six WEEKS after being diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). She was 41 years old. Our children were teenagers. There are no words to describe the pain and grief the three of us went through, a pain that I know we share with others who have lost a loved one through ANY form of cancer. We must rise up together and DEFEAT all forms of cancer. I urge you to help in any way you can!