Hi, new to this forum, the mum of a teenage daughter who was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, completely out of the blue, in Sept 2023, and has had the roughest of rides with chemotherapy which caused seizures and a coma, she lost her mobility, was bed bound for months, spent a year in hospital, is now home and learning to walk again, on maintenance chemo. Its just been dreadful, and I really could do with some success stories regarding teenagers who’ve been through leukemia and gone on to live happy lives
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Hi @Charlotte234 it sounds as if you and your daughter have been through a really rough and as you say dreadful time.
I am so glad that you have found us, we are here for both of you.
I will copy the Blood Cancer UK link about young adults with blood cancer
Blood cancer and young adults | Blood Cancer UK
I think what I would say is that it is not so much the exact blood cancer or relationship that tends to bond us but often the fears, thoughts, emotions and practicalities.
As for being a mother you have the love and maternal feelings in the mix which are so hard as well.
I actually have have Chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL) ,and I was diagnosed 21 yrs ago today, and I was not as young as your daughter, my 70th birthday was my best ever.
I hope others in more of a similar situation to yourselves will be able to share for you.
The Blood Cancer UK support line is also there for you on 0808 2080 888.
Be very kind to yourselves and spoil yourselves, just take it a day (hour) at a time, slow and steady wins the race.
Please do keep posting and I look forward to hearing more about you both.
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Hi @Charlotte234.
I can only imagine how difficult this must have been for your daughter and your family and all in such a short amount of time.
You must have had a rollercoaster of emotions, supporting your daughter but managing your own feelings as well as a mum.
It sounds like you have been an amazing support to your daughter. I really hope that others can share their experiences with you and remember, the support line is there if you need to talk anything through.
Please take good care of yourself and keep us updated on how you are doing X
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Can I ask, is the support line free of charge?
I continue to be traumatised by the whole experience. We’d been on a family holiday to Majorca in August 2023, and she’d done her GCSEs and was due to start college in the September.
Throughout Year 10 and 11, she seemed to always be ill with sore throats, colds etc, where nobody else in the household was ill.
Then she started with a sore throat upon return from Majorca in August 2023, and our local hospital found her neutrophils were 0.01 and she had very few white blood cells, they did a bone marrow biopsy and wham! We got an ALL diagnosis on 22.9.23. Devastating. She had waist length blond hair and was inconsolable when told she would lose it all. The months of chemo were brutal, and one night, when I was staying over at the hospital, she had 4 seizures, was put in a coma, and when she awoke, couldn’t feel her legs from the waist down.
We understood it to be a temporary paralysis, but it has taken a full year for her just to be able to hobble around the house. So she lost all her hair, appetite, mobility, independence and her college place. I feel as though I’m going through PTSD from it all, even though she’s improving and is now living at home. She was fully hospitalised, as an inpatient, for almost a year, and also has an ongoing fungal infection. I really need to find some inspiration, some success stories of teenagers who have had ALL and gone on to live normal lives with no further health complications. Can anyone help with this?
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Hi @Charlotte234 yes, the helpline is free of charge.
I hope someone will be able to share their experiences for you.
It sounds as if you have done a brilliant job as a mum.
Be ever so kind to yourselves
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Welcome to a safe and supportive forum. I am Mum to a beautiful 21 year old daughter who was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML)) in April 2024. My daughter is currently in remission after many rounds of intensive chemotherapy. I can fully empathise with the awful journey you are on.
You can find my thread on this forum. I can totally understand you wanting to find stories of other young people who have had a cancer diagnosis. I think as parents we reach out to try and find information and outcomes, a glimpse of what the future may bring.
It sounds as if the journey so far has been truly rough and I wish you strength.
I guess what I can offer is this, everyone’s cancer treatment plan and outcome will be different. It is good to learn to try take every hour as it comes… Try to find a positive in every day/hour sometimes. Look after yourself in all of this. Seek support so that you can be as strong as possible in order to support your daughter.
This forum is a wonderful place to be 
. Here you will find support and information. Look after yourself and your loved ones and do keep posting when you can.
Sarah
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So much to go through in a year and so much for a teenager to take on. Heartbreaking to see her go through this.
I’ve found the support line such a strength. Here are the details:
Contact Blood Cancer UK | Blood Cancer UK.
I hope you find this a safe space to say how it really is for you. We are all here to support and listen X
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So glad that you can share your story. It really shows the value of the forum. How are you doing? X
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