Leukemia

After returning from a diving trip to Cyprus in November 2021, I started having headaches and sweating at night. Just two weeks later, I was diagnosed with acute leukemia and was immediately hospitalized. Two days later, I had my first round of chemotherapy as my case was pretty serious. Chemotherapy became a big part of my everyday life for the next three months.

I was first diagnosed with pre-B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in June of 2018. Like a whirlwind, I spent the next nine months fighting for my life, battling sepsis, liver failure, and receiving more transfusions than I could ever count. But I achieved remission for 18 months! And during those 18 months, I made every moment count.

I was first diagnosed with pre-B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in June of 2018. Like a whirlwind, I spent the next nine months fighting for my life, battling sepsis, liver failure, and receiving more transfusions than I could ever count. But I achieved remission for 18 months! And during those 18 months, I made every moment count.

In August 2019, I developed pneumonia for the third time in two years. I had been finding that my ability to fight off illness was not as good as it used to be. Once it got to the point that I was having problems breathing, I decided to go to urgent care. Two years prior, I had been hospitalized for pneumonia, and I wasn’t looking forward to it happening again. 

My wife was diagnosed with Pre-B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in June of 2018. For nine months I watched her battle her cancer and her treatments. I learned so much about what families with a cancer patient go through ― the uncertainty, the anxiety, and many protocols and precautions to keep your loved one safe. It was a very scary time for us, full of unknowns.

My daughter was a professional dancer out on tour when she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). She was 25 years old dancing in Detroit, Michigan, at the time, feeling short of breath and having night sweats. Being a dancer, you are in the best shape of your life, and you know when something is going on with your body.

My Uncle Don Parker is my hero, and my favorite uncle as well, who just never gave up on himself and others. And when he got sick and passed away with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) in 2001, I was inspired to do a Team In Training (TNT) marathon in Honolulu, Hawaii, that same year in December 2001.