‘Dance Moms’ Star Abby Lee Miller, 61, Celebrates Birthday in Panama — 7 Years Cancer-Free From Burkitt Lymphoma. Here’s What’s New in B-Cell Lymphoma Treatment Since Then

In the caption, Miller joked that her birthday hadn’t gone as smoothly as everyone’s well-wishes suggested it would. She described a chaotic early start — waking at 4:30 a.m., rearranging luggage at the airport, and getting hit with a $258 charge for her medical device bag despite it supposedly flying free.

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She also poked fun at the added uncertainty of traveling with her wheelchair, wondering aloud whether it would arrive intact or in need of repairs, and joked that even modern tools like Google, ChatGPT, and YouTube couldn’t help her figure out its simple on/off switch.

Despite the frustrations, she concluded her post with an upbeat note, writing, “I’m in Panama! Can’t wait to teach tomorrow! We’re all going to have fun!”

Miller’s birthday comes after she made her first appearance in Ecuador at World of Dance Ecuador on Sept. 18, 2026, where she led an exclusive dance workshop, served as an official competition judge and met with dancers during the event.

Footage shared by World of Dance Ecuador celebrated Miller’s birthday with a heartwarming video compilation showing the dance icon in her wheelchair onstage, surrounded by dancers, with a birthday cake resting on her lap as she blew out the candles.

It’s truly inspiring to see Miller continue teaching dance and traveling while navigating life in a wheelchair after undergoing multiple surgeries and 10 rounds of highly invasive chemotherapy as part of her cancer treatment.

“Even though I’m paraplegic and I’m in the wheelchair, I am not letting it hold me back,” she told The U.S. Sun in a 2023 interview.

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Although Miller underwent chemotherapy to treat her rare form of B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma, it’s important to note that treatment approaches vary depending on the type and stage of lymphoma.

When chemotherapy does not adequately control the disease or lymphoma relapses, several other treatment options have emerged as standard approaches in recent years. However, the right approach depends on the specific type of lymphoma, how it has responded to previous treatment, and the patient’s overall health.

Beyond chemotherapy, patients with B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma now have access to a growing range of treatments — including CAR T-cell therapy, bispecific antibodies, stem cell transplant, targeted drugs, and antibody-drug conjugates — many of which have emerged or expanded significantly over the past decade.

Growing Treatment Options

Since Miller announced she was cancer-free in 2019, treatment options for B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma have grown substantially.

CAR T-cell therapy, once considered a last-resort treatment, has moved into earlier use for aggressive large B-cell lymphomas, according to the American Society of Hematology. It’s also now approved for other types of the disease, including relapsed follicular lymphoma, mantle cell lymphoma, and chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Starting in 2022, a newer type of treatment called bispecific antibodies began receiving FDA approval, according to research published on the National Institutes of Health’s PMC database. Unlike CAR T-cell therapy, which requires collecting and re-engineering a patient’s own cells over several weeks, bispecific antibodies are ready to use right away, offering a faster option for patients who need treatment quickly.

CAR T-Cell Therapy, Bispecific Antibodies — Choosing Between Innovative Treatment Options

Researchers are also working on improving CAR T-cell therapy itself, according to a study published on the NIH’s PMC database, developing new versions designed to work better and target the cancer more precisely.

Looking ahead, doctors are now studying whether both CAR T-cell therapy and bispecific antibodies could be used even earlier in treatment — potentially as a first option, rather than something reserved for later stages of the disease, according to the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

RELATED: Revolutionizing Lymphoma Treatment: How CAR T-Cell Therapy is Transforming Outcomes in Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma

In an earlier interview with SurvivorNet, Dr. Loretta Nastoupil, an oncologist at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, said, “We’ve spent a lot of time over the last two decades trying to figure out ways to overcome that chemo resistance.”

CAR T-cell therapy, which involves training a person’s own immune cells to target and attack cancer cells, is one option — but due to road-blocks like access and toxicity, CAR T-cell therapy is not an option for everyone.

RELATED: Expanding Access For Patients, Safety Restrictions Lifted For CAR T-Cell Therapy Breyanzi—A Powerful Treatment ForDiffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL)

“Bispecific antibodies are sort of another version of that,” Dr. Nastoupil explains. “We’re using the patient’s own immune system without having to take [cells] out of the patient’s body. We stimulate those immune cells and we guide them at the tumor.”

Bispecific therapies bind to two antigens at once. One arm of the treatment binds to the cancer cell and attacks it directly. Meanwhile, the other arm attaches to a “killer” immune cell called a T-cell, and pulls it toward the lymphoma cell.

Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma: It’s More Than Just One Type

Meanwhile, Dr. Manali Kamdar, associate professor and the clinical director of lymphoma services at the University of Colorado, previously told SurvivorNet, “I would say prior to the advent of CAR T-cell therapy in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, our first shot was our best shot, with rituximab plus chemotherapy as an option like R-CHOP or R-EPOCH. And we do know that a substantial number of patients would relapse. And the majority of these would relapse within the first year of having received chemotherapy or not respond to it at all.

“With the advent of CAR T-cell therapy, they made a huge splash.”

Miller’s story is a reminder of how far lymphoma treatment has come — and the challenges some survivors continue to face long after treatment ends. More than seven years after being declared cancer-free, it’s heartening to see her continuing to teach and judge dance, travel, and celebrate her 61st birthday onstage from her wheelchair. Her journey shows that while a cancer diagnosis can change your life, it doesn’t have to define it.

Miller has undergone multiple surgeries and rounds of chemotherapy as part of her cancer treatment. She also required emergency surgery after shattering her tibia and fibula in a swimming pool and has continued to struggle with broken bones, which she has attributed to the effects of “10 rounds of very invasive chemotherapy” that left her bones “very brittle.”

RELATED: Conquering Fear in the Treatment of Large B-Cell Non Hodgkin Lymphoma

Facing Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma is a broad category of cancers that begin in white blood cells called lymphocytes, which play a crucial role in the body’s immune system. According to Dr. Julie Vose, chief of hematology/oncology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, understanding the specific type of NHL is essential for determining the best course of treatment.

WATCH: The type of lymphoma you have matters.

B-Cell vs. T-Cell Lymphoma

Doctors classify NHL based on the type of lymphocytes affected:

B-cell lymphomas account for nearly 85% of NHL cases. These cancers originate in cells responsible for producing antibodies that identify and fight infections.
T-cell lymphomas, making up 15% of cases, arise in T-cells, which directly attack harmful invaders like bacteria and viruses.
Identifying whether the lymphoma is B-cell or T-cell helps guide treatment options tailored to the disease’s behavior and progression.

Types of B-Cell Lymphoma

• Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma
• Follicular lymphoma
• Small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL) / Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL)
• Mantle cell lymphoma
• Marginal zone lymphomas
• Burkitt lymphoma

Types of T-Cell Lymphoma

• T-lymphoblastic lymphoma/leukemia
• Peripheral T-cell lymphomas
• Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma

Aggressive vs. Indolent (slow-growing) Lymphomas

One of the key distinctions doctors make when diagnosing NHL is how rapidly the cancer grows and spreads.

• Indolent (slow-growing) lymphomas tend to develop over time and may not require immediate aggressive treatment.
• Aggressive lymphomas spread quickly and need intensive treatment to prevent further progression.

Dr. Jennifer Crombie, medical oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, explains that understanding whether the lymphoma is indolent or aggressive is essential, as they require very different treatment approaches.

Treatment for Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

The approach to treatment depends largely on the specific diagnosis and how the cancer behaves in the body.

Unlike Hodgkin lymphoma, which often spreads predictably from one lymph node group to the next, non-Hodgkin lymphoma can spread more randomly throughout different lymph node clusters.

WATCH: Non-Hodgkin lymphoma treatment options

While some forms of NHL are treatable but not curable, others progress rapidly if left untreated, warns Dr. Lawrence Piro, President and CEO of The Angeles Clinic and Research Institute. Patients diagnosed with aggressive forms often require immediate intervention, while those with slower-growing types may manage their disease with targeted therapies or observation.

As researchers continue to advance treatment strategies, early diagnosis, and personalized care remain key to improving patient outcomes in the fight against non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

WATCH: Understanding R-CHOP treatment.

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma treatment depends on the type, stage, and how fast it grows. People with aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma can expect to get a chemotherapy combination called R-CHOP, which is a drug cocktail consisting of chemotherapy drugs plus an antibody-drug and a steroid to treat diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

R-CHOP stands for:

• R: Rituximab (Rituxan) is a monoclonal antibody that attaches to a specific protein called CD20, which sits on the surface of B cells. It targets cancerous cells and destroys them.
• C: Cyclophosphamide is a type of chemotherapy drug
• D: Doxorubicin hydrochloride (hydroxydaunomycin) is a type of chemotherapy drug
• V: Vincristine sulfate (Oncovin) is a type of chemotherapy drug
• P: Prednisone is a steroid which lowers inflammation

Patients receiving R-CHOP receive the drug in six cycles that are three weeks apart.

“R-CHOP is a cocktail of drugs. There are five different drugs in that recipe,” Dr. Jennifer Crombie, medical oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, tells SurvivorNet.

R-CHOP side effects can include:

• Tiredness and weakness
• Hair loss
• Mouth sores
• Bruising and bleeding
• Increased risk of infection
• Appetite loss and weight loss
• Changes in bowel movements

Immunotherapy and targeted therapy are also treatment options for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma patients.

Rituximab (Rituxan) was the first immunotherapy drug approved to treat some forms of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. “Rituximab is the immunotherapy that has been approved the longest, and we have the most experience with lymphoma,” Dr. Chong tells SurvivorNet.

Rituxan has side effects, including fever, chills, swelling under the skin, itching, and mild shortness of breath.

Brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris) is a relatively new targeted treatment for non-Hodgkin lymphoma and Hodgkin lymphoma. This drug is an antibody-drug conjugate that combines an antibody (a type of protein that recognizes foreign substances in the body) with a drug that treats cancer. It uses a particular protein to deliver medicine directly to the cancer cell.

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma can also be treated with radiation, which aims beams of intense energy at the cancer to stop cancer cells from growing and dividing.

Questions for Your Doctor

If you have been diagnosed with lymphoma, it’s important to ask your doctor a series of questions to get an idea of your next steps. To help you during this difficult time, SurvivorNet has some questions to kickstart your conversation with your physician.

• What type of lymphoma do I have?
• What does my pathology report say about my diagnosis?
• Should I get a second opinion before I explore possible treatment options?
• Based on my diagnosis, what do you anticipate my treatment path?
• What common side effects should I expect when I begin treatment?
• Will I be able to continue working and normal daily activities during treatment?
• Where can I get help working with the insurance company regarding treatment costs?
• Who do you recommend I get mental health help during my treatment?

Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff

Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.

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