September is National Blood Cancer Awareness Month. According to the National Foundation for Cancer Research, there are more than 1.2 million people currently living with blood cancer or in remission from it. Blood cancers account for roughly 10% of new cancer cases each year in the US. There are three main types of blood cancers, Leukemia, Lymphoma, and Myeloma.
I was first introduced to Leukemia way back in 1996, at 17 years old. My dad was diagnosed with Leukemia. At that time, I had no idea what it was nor what it meant for my family. Why would a junior in high school even need to know what blood cancer is? Over the course of the next almost 5 years, I learned pretty fast about blood cancers, the toll they took on ones body, and the stress a family faces when dealing with it.
Perspective on life when your 17 is very different than when your 40. My dad, only 41, when diagnosed with stage 4 Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL), a young pup when you consider most people are closer to 70 when diagnosed with this type. I am turning 41 in two months, my husband is 41 now. It really brings life full circle when you reach the age your parents were. Especially something life changing like a cancer diagnosis. Being a teenager, I was wanting to do what I wanted to do not realizing fully what my parents were going through.
The day my dad was diagnosed in December 1996 is the day we lost his income. My parents worked hard, they provided the best they could. But losing one income when you rely on it is devastating. Back then, I didn’t know the struggles. His cancer was pretty far advanced upon diagnosis so he had to start some pretty intense treatment right away. We didn’t only lose an income, we lost a way of life. Our life quickly went from carefree and laid back to stressed and scary.
Over the next almost 5 years he went from Leukemia, transforming to Lymphoma, and having his spleen removed. We had multiple hospitalizations, many bone marrow biopsies, countless lab draws, and round after round of chemotherapy. Many nights spent wrapped around a toilet being sick, sleeping in a chair because laying down was just to painful, or just not eating. And unfortunately in September 2001 we started down a path we were dreading. After two months in the hospital he came home for his final 9 days of life, we said our goodbyes in our living room. November 14th, 2001 will be a day I never forget, watching my dad take his last breath was probably one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life.
The story of blood cancers in my family doesn’t end there. My dad was one of seven boys who grew up on a farm near my hometown. After my dad, his brother Jerry was also diagnosed with CLL, then his brother Kent, and finally his brother Lynn. If your counting that is 4 of the 7 brothers. Jerry lost his battle in 2010 and at the end of 2019 both Kent and Lynn were on their last few weeks of life. Lynn passed on December 23 and a mere 24 days later Kent passed. After 23 years of active Leukemia in my family we no longer have someone suffering from it. I think its fair to say CANCER SUCKS.
Over the years, with the cluster of brothers diagnosed with CLL, my family participated in a study done by the National Cancer Institute. The study first contacted us in 2003 with following up testing over the years. My dad had already passed when we started in the study. My siblings, myself, and my mom participated along with my dads brothers. By have us participate they were hoping to get information on my dad and the brothers. We are hopeful that one day there is research to understand why so many in our family were unfortunate to have to deal with it.
If your interested in helping out there are many organizations that support continued research. You can donate to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, by clicking the donate now button. You can sign up for an event through Team in Training or participate in a Light the Night event. Supporting the American Cancer Society is also a great way to show support for any type of cancer. There are numerous locally organized events such as Relay for Life, or Gala’s. You an even volunteer to bring meals to a family who is dealing with sickness.
I am hopeful our journey with Leukemia is done but I know it may not be. I also know there are many families who are dealing with it now, and now is the perfect time to help support the fight against it.
–Bri