Linda Millar knew something was wrong with her health when she began experiencing constant fatigue.  She found commuting between St. Catharines and Toronto for work to be extremely difficult and began experiencing some pain in her legs.

Linda visited her doctor, who ordered a blood test.  She was surprised to receive a phone call from him later that evening.  The next day, she found out that the blood test showed the presence of acute myeloid leukaemia (AML).

AML occurs when the myeloid cells interfere with the normal production of blood cells.  It causes the body to produce many immature white blood cells.  The symptoms include fatigue, bleeding, easy bruising, loss of appetite, and shortness of breath.

Millar was sent to the Juravinski Hospital and Cancer Centre to receive an intense regime of chemotherapy.  This treatment would kill the mutated cells causing too many white blood cells to be produced.  The treatment was a success and Millar returned home.

Unfortunately, the cancer returned 14 months later.  More chemotherapy was required.  It was a different experience this time, with the treatments causing a huge amount of fatigue.  Linda’s doctors said that her best option was to receive a stem cell transplant.

A stem cell transplant can be used to restore a person’s ability to create healthy blood cells.  Patients receiving a stem cell transplant have stem cells infused into their bone marrow.  It is usually administrated after the patient has received very strong chemotherapy treatments to kill all traces of the cancer.

Millar began receiving chemotherapy and immunosuppression treatment at Juravinski in preparation for the stem cell transplant.  She had to be carefully monitored during this process, because her immune system would be severely weakened.

Thankfully, the treatment was a success!  All traces of cancer are now gone and Lina is feeling full of energy.  Another great success story attributable to the regenerative power of stem cells.

Source: Conquering cancer with a stem cell transplant

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