Adults

My story is very unique. Christine and I got married in July of 1979. In August she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). As we all now know, the prognosis at that time was not the best for an adult with ALL. There was a new procedure called a bone marrow transplant. Chris was not a candidate and seven months after we were married, she passed away at the age of 26. 

At age 69, I was diagnosed with stage IIIA nodal marginal zone lymphoma (NMZL) following a neck lymph node biopsy, PET scan, and a bone marrow biopsy. It’s a rare form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). I had enlarged lymph nodes in my neck, axilla bilaterally, and groin bilaterally. However, the bone marrow biopsy showed no lymph node enlargement.

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.

I’m from Hungary. I’m 34 years old and just recently moved to Durango, Colorado, to marry my husband, Joe. For two years, we worked through a long-distance relationship during COVID and thought we would never face a tougher task in life than facing an uncertain future beset by travel restrictions, an eight-hour time difference, and thousands of miles.

It was July of last year. I had a cold I was getting over and thought I had a sinus infection. I went to an ENT who told me everything was okay. Days later I had swelling in my gums and went to a dentist. They took two X-rays and didn't like what they saw and sent me to an oral surgeon. He did a CAT scan and saw major bone loss.

To be healed by the miracles of modern medicine and prayer was the most profound experience of my life. It is difficult to articulate the gratitude my family and I feel in our hearts for the people who made it so. There is no scenario where I would be here today, writing this account, without the research made possible by The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS).

After 16 years, my oncologist still calls me her Miracle Patient. At diagnosis, I had Stage 4 mantle cell lymphoma (MCL), and 90% of my bone marrow was a cancerous mush. After months of punishing inpatient chemo, I was emaciated, bald, and “against all odds” in remission. But to survive I needed an allogeneic bone marrow transplant.

I am a cancer mom. I WAS a cancer mom. My youngest son, Will, was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) at age 19 in April of 2019. He, his dad, and I were beyond shocked when we heard the news that the swollen lymph nodes that came up out of the blue one March morning were indeed HL. We didn't really know anybody personally that had it.

I’m a two-time acute myeloid leukemia (AML) survivor. I was diagnosed in 2018 and completed the 7/3 induction and consolidation then relapsed in 2020 and had a full myeloablative bone marrow transplant on May 4th, 2021, at Penn Med in Philadelphia.