Which day will you never forget? Every week, readers talk about a specific day in their lives that will always stay with them. This week it is Danielle who learned last year that she had acute leukemia. “I immediately thought of my son and daughter. They were fourteen and eleven years old. What if I died and had to leave them behind?”
Danielle: “Very tired, muscle pain and dizziness. These were the complaints that I discussed with my doctor on July 27, 2022. Because she was thinking of a burn out and/or a hormonal imbalance, she referred me to the blood test clinic. We would then be in touch again for the results, but it was expected that this would take some time. So I had not at all counted on my GP calling me two hours after the blood test. Yet that was the case, because according to her the result was not good. There was a suspicion that I had leukemia, so I had to go straight to the hospital for further examination.”
To emergency care
“I heard it in shock. I was home alone at the time because my children were away and my husband was at work. That’s why I went to my mother, completely out of control. She lives nearby and in tears I told her the news. Like me, she was very shocked. Since I was unable to have a normal conversation, she called my husband. He came home straight away and I attended the emergency room with him within an hour.”
Rash
“The doctors there took blood from me again. They also explained that I was being admitted for further examination. Three days later I got the results. I did indeed have leukemia, or rather; acute lymphocytic leukemia. This is a form of blood cancer that mainly occurs in children. So it was quite rare that I got it as an adult, but unfortunately I was one of the exceptions.
When I heard the news, I immediately thought of my son and daughter. They were fourteen and eleven years old. What if I died and had to leave them behind? ”
Complications
“Fortunately, the doctors said the disease was treatable. So I was able to recover from it, but I had to start chemotherapy quickly. I didn’t have much time to think about it, because the first treatment started the next day. Although I didn’t notice it much at first, after a while I started to have problems with my liver and kidneys. It turned out that my blood values were very bad. According to my doctors, my liver and kidneys could not handle the chemo treatments and that is why I had to stop it early.”
One more option
“Because chemotherapy was no longer an option for me, my doctors had to look for an alternative. There was one more option we could try and that was a stem cell transplant. My doctors were not really enthusiastic about that, because the question was whether my body could handle it. What if a stem cell transplant would mainly cause harm? Then we would be even further from home.”
Donor
“Despite the reservations, my doctors and I decided to go for a stem cell transplant. It was my best chance and I had no alternative. So four months ago I underwent a stem cell transplant. My brother was the donor and I was very grateful that he wanted to help me.”
Coma
“What followed was a long time to recover. Although the operation was successful, my body had to get used to the stem cell transplant. I felt very ill and noticed that I could hardly breathe. This almost destroyed me, until I was put into an artificial coma. Fortunately, I recovered from that and I have been doing quite well since then.”
Vaccinate again
“According to my doctors, I am clean now. This means that no cancer cells were found in my blood after the stem cell transplant. And to keep it that way, my health is closely monitored. So now we just have to wait and see how it all develops.
And in the meantime I am also building up my resistance again. Because I have to start all over again, just like babies, I pick up viruses very easily. For me they can be very dangerous, so that is why I am once again getting all the vaccinations that children receive.
Furthermore, I am very careful. Going outside and doing some shopping is allowed, but I prefer not to hug anyone (except for my children and my husband) or shake hands. So I’m actually still living in corona times.”
To trust
“According to my doctors, it could take another year before I feel like my old self again. I am currently not working (I am a residential assistant at a residential group for elderly people with dementia). Although at the beginning of my illness I found it very difficult to trust that a good outcome would occur, I notice that the stem cell transplant has changed my view of this now. Of course, I still have a long way to go, but if my doctors are positive, then so am I. They know what they are doing and I have every confidence in that!”
Text: Renée Brouwer
Photo: own photo
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2023-10-18 14:34:09
#Danielle #discovered #acute #leukemia
