Abby Lee Miller's Achievement
- After going through cancer, bankruptcy, and multiple surgeries, Dance Moms’ Abby Lee Miller is living the high life at the posh and upscale Annabel’s Mayfair in London.
- Miller was diagnosed with Burkitt Lymphoma in April 2018, and after suffering complications from her first spinal surgery, she's used an electric wheelchair for mobility.
- By making a list, whether physically or mentally, of all the things you want to do or moments you want to be there for, it can make you even more determined to push through treatment and live your best life after remission.
To celebrate this Christmas season, Miller decided to jet out to London for a relaxing vacation full of fun activities. Before she took her plane back to the United States, Miller decided to go all out by visiting Annabel’s Mayfair, a high-class members only club nestled in the Mayfair neighborhood. She decided to commemorate the impressive occasion by taking a few photos in the front of the building, but photos weren’t allowed inside.
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Miller was diagnosed with Burkitt Lymphoma in April 2018, and after suffering complications from her first spinal surgery, she's used an electric wheelchair. She attends regular physical therapy sessions to build her strength back up, but recently faced yet another obstacle as a result of a second spinal surgery she had in October. The procedure caused the fracture of two vertebrae, and went through a third spinal surgery November 2020 to rectify it.
"I didn't have any health issues," Miller told SurvivorNet in an exclusive interview. "I never spent a night in the hospital before this happened. All the vertebrae are so bad. I have osteoporosis, extremely poor bone quality. I can walk a couple steps with the walker, but I'm not where I was before September 30.”
Miller's determined mentality has helped her achieve incredible milestones during her physical therapy appointments. Even when COVID-19 forced her to stop going to her rehab center in person, she still found inventive ways to work out whether it was boxing with water bottles or using an at-home personal trainer.
"I've been given a second chance,” Miller previously told SurvivorNet in an exclusive interview. “I survived prison. I survived a very rare cancer. I survived 10 rounds of invasive chemotherapy. I survived all the needles and all the tests, emergency spine surgery, a second spine surgery. All of these things not to mention all of the heartbreaks, and all of the sadness. I survived it all. I definitely am a survivor.”
Milestones Matter
Despite going through numerous obstacles throughout her life, Miller has never taken her eye off the prize whether it’s walking again or jet setting across the world. By making a list, whether physically or mentally, of all the things you want to do or moments you want to be there for, it can make you even more determined to push through treatment and live your best life after remission. These milestones can really matter.
"If you know something's wrong, you need to be your own advocate, and you need to go out there and fight for it,” Miller told SurvivorNet.
Chrissy Degennaro is the perfect example of how determination can help you appreciate milestones even more. Chrissy has been battling a rare blood cancer called multiple myeloma for 14 years, and was first diagnosed when she was 36-years-old. She had a 2-year-old son at the time, and once hearing the news, almost expected to not be able to see him enter kindergarten. However, she was determined to try as hard as possible.
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Over the past 14 years, she's gone through 27 rounds of chemotherapy, two stem cell transplants, participated in a CAR T cell trial, and had two CAR T cell transplants. Needless to say it's been a difficult road, and continues to be, but she's enjoying every day to the fullest.
"You know, I do live one day at a time," Chrissy previously told SurvivorNet. "Now, maybe I can go a week, a month, but things are looking pretty good. I'm able to be here for more milestones for my son, for more holidays, more birthdays. I do feel like I have had another chance at life."
Chrissy Degennaro focused on milestones during cancer treatment, and it paid off
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