Refusing to Give Up
- Eliana Keeling, 65, began chemotherapy for leukemia on Christmas Day in 2020. When doctors told her five months later that the treatment hadn’t worked and she had months to live, she refused to accept it.
- Eliana asked for a referral to The Christie in Manchester and was enrolled on a clinical drug trial. Six months later, she was told there was no evidence of her acute myeloid leukemiashe was cancer-free.
- According to the National Cancer Institute, early signs of AML can be caused by common diseases such as the flu, with patients experiencing fever, fatigue, or loss of appetite. The American Cancer Society recommends people should report any symptoms to their doctor immediately, seeing as AML develops quickly.
The “fit and active” retired teacher from Greater Manchester, England, simply told her cancer to “get out.”
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“I used to talk to my cancer, it seems weird but I used to tell it ‘I’m not happy’ and that I was going to fight for my life,” Eliana told the Mirror. “I would tell it ‘I don’t want you here, get out of my blood.'”
When she first heard the news that the disease was eradicated, “I couldn’t believe it, it felt like a miracle,” she said. “Then we had a glass of wine to celebrate.”
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Last month, she had an important milestone to celebrate, which felt a whole lot more special this time around: her 31st wedding anniversary with her husband, John, and her bucket list continues.
“When I was told I had cancer it was a real shock that I never expected because I don’t smoke, I’m very active, I used to go to the gym every day,” Eliana shared. “I had to fight it because I knew it would destroy me otherwise and I wouldn’t be able to do all the things on my bucket list that I hadn’t had chance to do.
She said she believes her “positive mantras” and immense family support, along with the amazing staff at “The Christie” gave her this second chance at life.
Eliana is sharing her news far and wide to give other patients hope. The message? No matter what, never give up.
Learning More About Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) may be the most common form of acute leukemia for adults, but recognizing symptoms can be difficult.
Dr. Gail Roboz, a medical oncologist at Weill Cornell Medicine, talked to SurvivorNet about common symptoms of AML, and the how the diagnosis is determined. According to Dr. Roboz, AML symptoms including shortness of breath, decreased exercise tolerance, unexplained bruising, or infections. In some cases, patients may have no symptoms of AML at all, and therefore are diagnosed unexpectedly during a routine health evaluation.
How To Recognize Symptoms Of Acute Myeloid Leukemia
"Often patients have no idea leukemia is even anywhere on the radar," Dr. Roboz tells SurvivorNet.
Dr. Roboz says that these symptoms are due to problems with bone marrow, which produce white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets. For patients with symptoms, physicians will perform a blood test, and if results come back unusual, then patients will be referred to a hematologist-oncologist. Abnormal blood test results typically show low blood cell or platelet counts. From there, physicians will perform a bone marrow biopsy in order to conclude an AML diagnosis.
According to the National Cancer Institute, early signs of AML can be caused by common diseases such as the flu, with patients experiencing fever, fatigue, or loss of appetite. As opposed to other types of cancer, screening tests have not been found helpful when trying to detect early stages of AML, and the American Cancer Society recommends people should report any symptoms to their doctor immediately, seeing as AML develops quickly.
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