Bond built during breast cancer treatment inspires survivor to volunteer
It had been two years since Billa Woollam’s last mammogram, and she knew she was long overdue for one. But it was a strange sensation in her breast that sent her rushing into a clinic for a breast exam in November 2015. The following morning, she was asked to return for a biopsy.
“My doctor’s office called and said I needed to be there within 30 minutes,” Billa recalls. “I knew they weren’t going to do that if there was nothing...
Clinical trial makes grandfather two-time lymphoma survivor
Jerry McLeary can recall the exact moment he just knew that his journey with a rare form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma would end happily.
9 things to know about CAR T-cell therapy
CAR T-cell therapy is a new type of cancer treatment offered at MD Anderson through clinical trials and FDA-approved standard of care cell...
Hemangioblastoma survivor grateful for neurosurgeon’s expertise
When the headache started, Tabatha Conway recognized it immediately. Although it had been 20 years since she first felt that headache, she knew what it meant: her brain tumor was back.
“It’s a very specific headache,” Tabatha says. “It feels like blood pulsating towards the back of my head.” It’s a fitting description, because the tumor, called hemangioblastoma, grows from blood vessel cells in the brain.
A stubborn brain...
Finding my voice after throat and salivary gland cancer
I’ve been struggling to make myself understood ever since I was a senior in high school. In April 1985, I was diagnosed with stage III nasopharyngeal...
How my late husband’s positive attitude continues to inspire me
My late husband and I had only known each other for a couple of months when he was diagnosed with stage IV synovial sarcoma — a...
6 ways caregivers can improve their health at MD Anderson
As a cancer caregiver, you’ve probably been told it’s important to take care of your own physical and mental health, too. But sometimes that...
4 tips for managing cancer treatment
Nothing could have shocked me more than being diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer in July 2016. The year I turned 54, I thought my biggest...
Breast cancer survivor, volunteer: How I support other patients
During one of breast cancer survivor Margaret Looper’s early visits to MD Anderson some 15 years ago, a volunteer who escorted her to her...
How we're facing familial adenomatous polyposis
When my father-in-law was in his 30s, he was diagnosed with colorectal cancer as a result of familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), a genetic...
Uterine cancer survivor finds miracles in her rare experience
Jan de Chambrier had always envisioned herself as a mother to several children. In 1990, she and her husband were on their way to fulfilling...
5 ways to help a cancer patient with speaking challenges
After being treated for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (a rare type of throat cancer) in 1985 and salivary gland cancer in 2016, speaking has become...
Teen brain cancer survivor: Be a warrior, not a victim
In high school, I didn’t have much of a social life. I had trouble with insomnia, anxiety, paranoia, depression and apathy. As time went on...
Ovarian cancer diagnosis and treatment: What’s new
Because its symptoms are often vague, ovarian cancer can be hard to diagnose. And a definitive diagnosis requires a biopsy, which is best...
A cancer survivor's guide to exercise and heart rate
As a cancer survivor, you know that exercise is one of the key factors in lowering your risk of cancer recurrence. But how do you know if...
Stage IV pancreatic cancer survivor: Why I’m giving back through the Moon Shots Program
Two summers ago, my daughter Claire was about to start her freshman year at the University of Alabama. So, I thought being a 54-year-old empty-nester...