Robin Roberts Offers Up A Prayer For Fan Recovering From Lymphoma
- While doing her daily prayer on Instagram, Good Morning America host Robin Roberts responded to a fan recovering from lymphoma with “Thank you and bless you!”
- Roberts is a breast cancer survivor and recently announced she’d be taking time off to care for partner Amber Laign.
- Over 80,000 people are predicted to be diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma this year.
"You may be in a valley that’s dry today. It looks permanent but you don’t have to figure out how God is going to bring you into abundance," she said. "He is not limited by what you don’t have. He knows how to turn your situation around because his favor can open a door that couldn’t be opened."
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In the comments, Instagram user amys_raysofsunshine shared what it is that she’s thankful for.
"Good morning! Grateful to be on the other side of lymphoma and spreading sunshine with my nonprofit to other cancer warriors going through bone marrow transplant," she wrote.
Roberts, 61, replied with simple grace, writing "thank you and bless you!"
Cancer A Personal Issue for Roberts
Roberts has her own connection to cancer, having survived breast cancer. Earlier this week she announced she’d be taking time off from GMA to care for her partner Amber Laign, 47, who is herself battling breast cancer.
Roberts thanked fans for their understanding during a "challenging week" for her longtime love.
"Thank you for allowing me to be with her," Roberts told fans as she resumed hosting her Instagram video series in her dressing room, focusing on the appropriate topic of "overcoming." Roberts looked positive as she noted that it was a "new week" and declared that we can all rise.
Roberts’ own battle began in 2007 when she discovered a lump. In an ironic twist, that discovery came while preparing for a segment on self-checks.
“At first I thought, 'This can't be. I am a young, healthy woman,'" Roberts said.
The journalist's early detection was a critical factor in her survival. She treated her breast cancer with surgery, one of several treatment options for this disease, which can also be treated with radiation, chemotherapy, hormone therapy and immunotherapy.
About Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma is one of the most common forms of cancer found in the United States, amounting to around four per cent of all cancer cases, according to the American Cancer Society. In 2022, an estimated 80,470 people will be diagnosed with the disease, with over 20,000 expected to lose their lives to it.
NHL is most commonly found in men, affecting roughly one out of 42 men at some point in their life, but women are also susceptible, with one in 52 expected to develop the disease at some point in their lifetime.
There are several risk factors associated with the disease. Age is one, as NHL primarily affects people in their 60s or older. White people are more likely than other races to develop the disease and there is often a hereditary predisposition.
Exposure to drugs such as some herbicides and insecticides has also been linked to developing non-Hodgin lymphoma, though the American Cancer Society said more study is needed.
People with autoimmune diseases or weakened immune systems are also at elevated risk.
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