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Patient Story |
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Tracy Lynn Betz Harrisburg, PA United States female Living with ALL for 6 years, 9 months Age: 44 We moved back to our hometown to be close to family and friends in February 2003. We had just recently bought a new home when found out we were expecting our sixth child. You know they always say, "everything happens for a reason". Everything was going well until 8 months into my pregnancy, when a routine exam showed abnormalities in my blood counts. My 4-year old daughter and I were at the mall finishing up Christmas shopping the following day, when my husband called and told me there was a message to call my OB/GYN's office. They told me I had leukemia. After I was diagnosed, everything began to happen so fast. We were referred to Hershey Medical Center to deliver our baby the following day. There were no problems with the delivery and she was perfect. Two days later, my husband took her home and I was transferred to the Cancer Floor to begin my chemotherapy treatments. I was in the hospital for a week and arrived back home on December 26th, 2003. I started my 7 months of intensive treatments, which at times consisted of 4 to 5 consecutive days of treatment and blood tests. I handled the treatments well, though I felt fatigued and nauseated at times. The toughest point of my treatment was toward the end, when I spent 4 days per week in the hospital, for 3 weeks in a row. The chemotherapy made me very sick and was very difficult physically. Thank goodness that I was in the hospital so that my family did not have to see me during these treatments. The nurses and doctors where wonderful. I was finally done with treatments about a month ago. We thought we were in the clear, until my platelet count bottomed out. I was in the hospital on bed rest for one week. All is well now and I am much better. A week after my last hospitalization, I went to the beach with my family. This was something that I wasn't sure I would be able to do again. To see my kids on the beach playing was worth everything. I didn't have it as bad as some people I saw during my 6-day hospitalization, and I pray every day that they find a cure for these diseases. No one should have to live with these diseases. As I said in the beginning, "everything happens for a reason." We were blessed with another child. She saved my life. Without her, who knows when they would have found my disease. God Bless you all. My prayers are with you. |
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