Gratitude during a Cancer Journey
- Helaina Hilliard was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia after noticing freckle-like spots that were growing on her skin.
- Today, she’s in the final phase of her treatment and feeling extremely grateful for the “different perspective on life” cancer has granted her.
- Common symptoms of acute lymphoblastic leukemia, or ALL, include feeling tired/weak, feeling dizzy or lightheaded, shortness of breath, pale skin, infections that don't go away or keep coming back, and more.
- Treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia typically involves long-term chemotherapy, according to the American Cancer Society.
- One of our experts says most young patients are able to be cured of ALL. Older patients are less likely to be cured, but our expert says treatment can prolong life in a meaningful way.
Helaina Hilliard, from Iowa, first noticed these spots in November 2021. After the spots grew within a few hours, she knew to go to the doctors. Resulting blood tests led to a shocking diagnosis of a cancer of the blood and bone marrow called acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
Read MoreChemotherapy is a daily event for Hilliard, and she’ll continue with the oral medications and monthly hospital visits until March 2024. Her side effects have been tough, but she takes pride in the strides she’s making with her health.
“I still have a long way to go before I am back to where I was before, fitness wise, and I’ve come to the fact I may never get back to the level of where I was before but if I have the ability to do so, I will,” she said. “I see progress daily in my fitness journey maybe because I had so much room for growth from what having leukemia did to my body initially.
“It has been very rewarding.”
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Hilliard had to take a year off from pursuing her biochemistry degree, but she plans to return to school in September and slowly get back to athletics. One day, she’s committed to becoming a dentist.
“Seeing the ones you love worry about you I would say was harder than fighting for my life,” she said. “It is crazy to look back at all of the chain of events and how I could have easily died.
“But I realize that going through cancer has allowed me to have a different perspective on life, which is a blessing.”
Understanding Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia
Acute lymphoblastic leukemia, or ALL, is a type of blood cancer that starts in the bone marrow. People also refer to this cancer as acute lymphocytic leukemia.
"ALL is a type of cancer that is very aggressive," Dr. Olalekan Oluwole, a hematologist with Vanderbilt University Medical Center, previously told SurvivorNet. "It grows very fast. Within a few weeks, a few months, the person will start to feel very sick.
"And that's why we will have to give it an equally aggressive type of treatment to break that cycle."
All About Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: Answers to the Most Common Questions about the Disease
Before an ALL diagnosis, patients often come to Dr. Oluwole with a fever or infections.
“By the time somebody comes to us and they have active lymphoblastic leukemia, we already assume that it has gone everywhere in the body,” he explained. “And we have to treat them like that.”
According to the American Cancer Society, common symptoms of ALL include:
- Feeling tired
- Feeling weak
- Feeling dizzy or lightheaded
- Shortness of breath
- Pale skin
- Infections that don't go away or keep coming back
- Bruises (or small red or purple spots) on the skin
- Bleeding, such as frequent or severe nosebleeds, bleeding gums or heavy menstrual bleeding in women
- Weight loss
- Fever
- Night sweats
- Loss of appetite
Treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia typically involves long-term chemotherapy, according to the American Cancer Society. The total treatment usually takes about 2 years, but it may be more or less intense depending on the subtype of ALL and other prognostic factors.
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Despite this cancer's aggressive nature, it's important to know that young patients with the disease will likely be cured. Older patients are less likely to be cured, but Dr. Oluwole says treatment can still prolong life in a meaningful way.
"Most young patients are able to be cured of ALL, however, most older patients are unable to be cured," he said. "If I'm speaking to someone who is in the pediatric age group or maybe a young adult, I can tell them right off the bat that our aim will be to cure you of this disease using chemotherapy alone. If we see that that doesn't work, we will have another chance by getting you to a stem cell transplant."
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