Search Results

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.

Kylie

Kylie Lynn Branch was diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) on January 22, 2015, just two days before her second birthday.

Lynn

My wife, Lynn Isaacson, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in October 2018. After three failed treatment approaches, she passed away on March 26, 2019, 162 days after diagnosis. From her diagnosis to her death, just 162 days passed. Of the 20,220 days she lived here on Earth, and the 12,047 days we loved each other on Earth – the disease was only with us for 162 days.

Stephanie

I was diagnosed with stage 2 Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) in 2000 and had seven months of chemotherapy (ABVD) and 20 rounds of radiation. I have not had a reoccurrence of HL, but in 2014, I was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). I see my oncologist every four months to check my white blood count, and so far, I am still in a watch-and-wait situation. I work full-time in a high-level, stressful job, have two children, and thankfully, have the energy to do it all and have not had to resort to any treatment yet.

Monica

As a First Connection® volunteer with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) for almost two years, I have had the opportunity to connect with patients and survivors to share their stories and experiences while battling this deadly illness. Every day I come across so many touching and courageous stories that inspire me to do more and more to support this cause.

Other Disease Studies

Another type of study that blood cancer patients and their relatives can participate in is a nontherapeutic study. Nontherapeutic studies aren't considered clinical trials because they don't involve the study of new diagnostics or treatments for diseases. Instead, they're developed to gain a better understanding of disease-incidence patterns or the consequences of specific treatments for a specific disease.

In all cases, you should be asked to sign a consent form that defines the study's purpose and what's expected from the participants.

Stem Cell Transplantation

The goal of stem cell transplantation is to cure the patient’s cancer by destroying the cancer cells in the bone marrow with high doses of chemotherapy and then replacing them with new, healthy blood-forming stem cells. The healthy blood stem cells will grow and multiply forming new bone marrow and blood cells. There are two main types of stem cell transplantation. They are

Side Effects

The side effects of treatment for essential thrombocythemia (ET) will depend on many factors, including the type of treatment and dosage, the age of the patient and coexisting medical conditions.

Management of side effects is important. Patients should discuss any concerns about side effects with their doctor. Most side effects are temporary and resolve when treatment is completed

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. However, some people with MF may survive for decades following their diagnosis. 

It is important to know that outcome data can show how groups of people with MF responded to treatment in the past, but it cannot always determine how any particular person will respond. For these reasons, patients are advised to discuss information about survival with their doctors.

Lashelle

In 2019, knots started to appear on my neck and jawline. My face was also massively swollen. I was unrecognizable. I had difficulty breathing, and major parts of my body were swollen as well. After several tests and two surgeries, I was unexpectedly diagnosed with non-Hodgkin T-cell lymphoma (NHL). I was told that if the cancer had stages, I was considered stage 4.

Austin

Four were spoken that day. Four crushing, breathtaking words, “Your son has cancer.” My world, my life, and my dreams for my son’s future suddenly halted while the rest of the world kept going on around us on May 14, 2011. Only days before, I was deciding what theme to have for his third birthday party and what outfit he would wear for his pictures. Days later, my husband and I were signing consents for the specific protocol of poison that would be pumped into Austin and having to digest the laundry list of possible side effects.

Delena

I was diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) at the age of two in 1981. I was sent to Riley Hospital for Children for assessment and to create a treatment plan.  At the time of my diagnosis, my mom was a single mother of two young daughters. My father passed away from Ewing sarcoma in April 1979. I was eight months old, and my sister was four when he passed.

Christine

Christine Attia knows first-hand how overwhelming and terrifying a blood cancer diagnosis can be. She lost her 27-year-old fiancé three years ago after a courageous six-month battle with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a blood cancer which has seen few improvements in treatments in more than 40 years.

Maria

My son, AJ, was diagnosed with leukemia on September 23, 2014, and from then on, our life changed. AJ had bumps, turns, and stops during his treatment, but we were lucky to have found The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) about a year into his 3¼-year treatment protocol. Our first event was a Light The Night (LTN) walk one year, one month, and one day from his diagnosis date. It was a special evening where AJ was able to see so many survivors and be surrounded by people who supported him.

Ken

I have the unique opportunity to be both a bone marrow donor and a stem cell recipient in my journey!

In the 1980s, I registered with the C.W. Bill Young Bone Marrow Donation program while stationed at the Naval Hospital in Long Beach, CA.

Bryan (Hennessy)

My name is Bryan, but most know me by my stage name Hennessy Williams. I was diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin Burkitt lymphoma (BL) on July 1st, 2005. I was 20 years old.  It was the hardest battle I ever faced, I am lucky to be here, I am lucky to be alive. I am alive because I had a tremendous amount of support from my family and friends, not everyone is blessed with this option.

Barry

I was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in May of 2003.  The diagnosis came after three or four months of tests attempting to diagnose a lump from my neck (which was ultimately removed).  My wife and I were told that I had a disease that was considered treatable but not curable.  My particular sub-type, follicular, has a tendency to reoccur.  I was referred to MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.  The staging test results showed I had a very small amount of the disease on the whole, but it was present in my bone marrow, which is considered Stage IV, or

Jonathan

This story is memory of my late fiancé, Jonathan Bentley, who passed away from acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) at the age of 33 after a week-long battle. Jon was a truly amazing person; the type that you wish everyone could meet once in their lifetime. Although he is now gone, I wish to honor his beautiful spirit by sharing a little bit about him.

Jay

Nana’s Heroes was started to honor Lois “Nana” Bowen. When he found out she was sick, Jay, Nana’s grandson, was 13. Around ninth grade, he wanted to do something about it. Although he couldn’t fix her all up or make her all better, he could help raise money to help find a cure for the awful disease that she had.

Leo

Five-year-old Leo was diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) in June 2019. His parents had noticed bruising on his legs, petechiae around his eyes, fatigue, and shortness of breath, but because the symptoms didn’t present all at once, they didn’t think it was anything serious. Thankfully, on a Friday afternoon, Leo was due for a check-up where the nurse noticed the bruising on his legs and ordered a blood test.

Mary Elizabeth

When Mary Elizabeth was 10 years old, she noticed a large lump on her neck. Her parents also noticed her lack of energy, but doctor after doctor couldn’t find anything wrong.

“On a family vacation, she wasn’t looking right, and we took her back to the doctor and insisted on bloodwork. The doctors were convinced it was mono,” said Mary’s mother, Mandy.

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.

Nicole

I’m an eight-year survivor of leukemia. I was a happy, healthy young adult. I noticed my body was bruising, and I would fall asleep at work. I didn’t think anything of it, but the bruising kept coming. I have twin girls, and on their birthday, July 1, I went to the ER. They ran all kinds of tests. I felt fine actually. They came back and were talking about white blood counts and oncologists. I knew right then and there it was cancer. I had an appointment with an oncologist on July 5, my mom’s birthday, and went back to the ER. This time I was admitted. I had no idea what was going on.

Kailash

On April 20, my 79-year-old father was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) after a routine blood test. A scientist, he explored all of his options thoroughly. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) was instrumental in providing us with accurate, up-to-date information about AML. He has chosen to prioritize his quality of life. Instead of chemo, he is spending his final chapter with friends, family, and favorite activities.

Christopher

Chris was diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) in January 2022. He underwent several rounds of chemo and a bone marrow transplant (his sister was a perfect match!) to put him in remission in May 2022. During the course of his remission, we bought a house, got married, and planned a wedding until he relapsed one year to the date of his initial diagnosis.