Search Results
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.
Seth
It was in my sophomore year at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs right around March 2021 when I first discovered the lump in my neck. I was simply doing homework at my desk, and my hand unconsciously brushed against my neck. I stopped and started to feel the unusual lump in my neck.
Soon after that, the tests started.
Eliot
It was my senior year of high school, and I was thriving: MVP of the soccer team that went to the state finals; strong academics with an offer to study Natural Sciences at Durham University, one of England’s finest; fantastic friends who were to become even more important to me. My biggest challenge was getting a date for the prom! Things that were within my control were going really well. However, things outside of my control then flexed their powerful muscles, and that high school life ended and a new one began.
Anthony
December of 2017 was a difficult time for me. It is the month that is usually filled with happiness, excitement and Christmas cheer. For me, it was the month I found out that I had Hodgkin lymphoma. It’s crazy when you think about it – we see all of these facts and figures about people who are diagnosed with cancer and we never, really, truly believe it could happen to us.
Reginé
I thought it was 'just another torn meniscus' back in the fall of 2019. The symptoms and signs all seemed too familiar and I just knew I'd have to get my meniscus repaired again, but this time in my left knee. After following through similar protocol in preparation to meet with the orthopedic doctor, upon my doctor's visit I was told my knee could not be further evaluated until deeper investigation by another physician: a musculoskeletal oncologist.
Edmund
U.S. veterans’ sacrifices can occur on the battlefield … or much later.
Houseboys sprayed Agent Orange on weeds around the Quonset huts of Edmund Montefusco and his fellow soldiers in Korea in the early 70s, but it was decades before Edmund’s rare, slow-growing hairy cell leukemia made itself known.
Kendra
When I was 10, I had just moved to a new city and was acclimating to my new life when I suddenly started experiencing headaches. They were dull and not especially painful, but they were constant and quickly became a daily experience. I loved my new school and my new friends, and I became so active in my community with sports and clubs that it was concerning to my parents when I began missing school and other events. Over the course of several months, I was in and out of urgent care where I was diagnosed with migraines and told that I should stop missing school.
Treatment Outcomes
All patients are advised to discuss survival information with their hematologist-oncologists. Keep in mind that outcome data can only show how other people with CMML responded to treatment, and cannot predict how any one person will respond.
Unfortunately, lasting remissions are not common. The expected survival time ranges from a few months to a few years after the initiation of treatment, depending on a variety of risk factors including the percentage of blasts in the blood and marrow, the white blood cell count, and the presence of certain gene mutations.
Signs and Symptoms
Children who have juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML) may have the following signs and symptoms:
- Difficulty breathing and/or dry cough
- Enlarged lymph nodes
- Abdominal pain and loss of appetite caused by enlarged kidney, liver and/or spleen
- Bone and joint pain
- Fatigue and pale skin (from low level of red blood cells)
- Easy bruising and bleeding (from low level of platelets)
- Frequent infections (from low level of white blood cells)
Some children also have skin changes which can include
Signs and Symptoms
The signs and symptoms of hairy cell leukemia aren't specific and are common to other, less serious illnesses. However, if you're troubled by any of the following symptoms, see your doctor:
Treatment Outcomes
Among patients with MF, the prognosis (meaning the likely outcome of the disease) varies widely. Each patient’s risk factors are evaluated individually to determine their prognosis.
The approximate median survival for MF patients is as follows, based on their risk category:
Choosing a Blood Cancer Specialist or a Treatment Center
Taking an active role in making decisions regarding your treatment can have a positive effect on your health and quality of life. One of your first choices as an active participant in your care is to either select a specialist to manage your treatment or to choose a treatment center.
You may be seeking a blood cancer specialist or a treatment center because you:
Stem Cell Transplantation
Allogeneic stem cell transplantation has been used to treat and sometimes cure chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML) patients. However, because of the high, sometimes life-threatening risks associated with stem cell transplantation, doctors rarely use it in elderly patients or patients in poor health.
Other Financial Assistance
LLS is part of the Cancer Financial Assistance Coalition (C-FAC), which helps cancer patients manage their financial challenges by:
- Helping members communicate and collaborate
- Educating patients and providers about resources and links to other organizations that provide information about C-FAC's resources
- Advocating for cancer patients regarding the financial burdens of cancer care
Rommy Omarys
My younger sister was diagnosed with lymphoma in 2022. She is the youngest of four siblings. I am the oldest, and for me, she has always been my baby sister. We all go through different difficulties ― family, personal, economic life, etc. ― but when a disease affects your body to the degree of being between life and death, the perspective is different. With the greatest sadness in the world and the possibility of not seeing my sister again in this physical plane, I never lost hope. The light in the dark was always strong and bright.
Katie
I was diagnosed with Leukemia when I was 20 months old. I endured treatment for a little over 2 years until I was declared cancer free. Since I was diagnosed so young, I do not remember the treatment. However, I do remember the support from The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) as my family participated in the LLS’s Light The Night walk every year for the past 18 years!
William
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) holds a special place in my heart. I lost my mother to therapy associated with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in July 2021. AML is a type of blood cancer that affects the bone marrow and blood. It can be very aggressive and progress rapidly without treatment. There are still certain forms of AML that do not have effective treatments, like the one my mother had. LLS was a resource I knew about from my work in solid tumor cancer research. It helped provide me with patient and caregiver resources that I needed at an extremely difficult time in my life.
Steven
I’m Steven, a 23-year-old who is no stranger to hard work and resilience. I juggle two jobs and live independently, but six months ago, my life took an unexpected turn when I was diagnosed with a rare form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). In a heartbeat, I was thrown into a world of uncertainty, doctors’ appointments, and intensive treatments. I had to face radiation therapy, surgeries, and the challenge of missing work ― all while trying to keep life moving forward.
Matthew
In the summer of 2020, I was diagnosed with stage 2 Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) after finding a lump in my chest. I had just finished track and field in my sophomore year of high school and thought that the lump in my chest was a popped rib or something with an easy fix. It wasn't.
Natasha & Cindy
My first day of treatment was on July 18, 2018 at UCLA Medical. That's where I met Natasha. I was a bit nervous going in not knowing what to expect so the nurses connected both of us. That same day Natasha found out she was in remission and I couldn't be happier for her. We both were diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma, going through the same treatment, and had the same doctor.
Charmane
I was diagnosed last November with aggressive B-cell non-Hodgkins lymphoma. I had two tumors. One on my heart muscle and one near my lung. I went through treatments at UVM Medical Center in Burlington, Vermont and just finished chemotherapy this month.
Asha
Hi! My name is Asha. I was diagnosed with stage 2 Hodgkin’s lymphoma when I was 18 years old in December 2018 during my freshman year of college. I noticed a bump on my neck that I thought may have been an insect bite until another one appeared next to the first one. When I saw that the bumps were connecting to each other that is when I told my parents.