In early 2024, I went to the doctor to inquire about my headaches and pulsatile tinnitus. I’d only had symptoms for about five weeks, and they were mild. Blood testing at my general practitioner's office showed that my hemoglobin was 5.4 — my doctor told me I needed to go to the ER immediately. I was in good spirits after a blood transfusion because it made my symptoms go away, and I thought I maybe had an allergy or anemia. The next day, I opened a MyChart notification before the hospital doctor had a chance to call. It said at the top: “diagnosis: acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).” I stared at it until the doctor called with the news.
It was February 2, 2024. My fiancé held me while I cried that day and again when we had to cancel our May 25, 2024, wedding because I’d be too sick to have (or even be at) a big event. I started chemo immediately and didn’t even have time to preserve my fertility because my cancer was so aggressive and advanced. I lost my hair, had painful spinal chemo, and countless bone marrow biopsies. My fiancé and I got married anyway, only surrounded by our parents and siblings, in a local vacation rental. I was bald and sick, having been febrile the night before, but I was glad to be married. In June, I still wasn’t fully in remission, so my doctor advised a stem cell transplant. Preparation began, and I soaked in my last few months of normalcy.
On October 25, 2024, after intense chemo and total body irradiation, I received stem cells from a random donor. I spent six weeks in the hospital, recovering from the transplant and fighting norovirus, BK virus, and constant nausea. But it worked. And I began the road to recovery. It took a lot of time, effort, and medication, since I suffered from GVHD and lung damage from radiation, but I started getting my spark back. I’ll never not feel like a cancer patient, I don’t think, but it changed my perspective in a lot of ways. I’m not glad it happened, but I’m inspired by my resilience and the resilience of other survivors.
Audrey
acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL)
