Marrow Masters

It's 2011. Imagine being halfway across the world in Africa, doing missionary work, and your daughter gets sick. You are far from modern medicine, and you're told your six-year-old has either mono or leukemia. Then, it turns out she has BOTH. Next thing Matt DeYoung knew, he, his wife, and all four kids were back in Grand Rapids, Michigan, as Lola battled Pre B Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. While...

Barb Hara found herself in the role of caregiver just last year when her sister Jackie was diagnosed with PH positive B cell ALL. Following a transplant, she just celebrated her first "birthday" in September of this year. As a caregiver to her older sister, Barb took the reigns and started taking notes - lots of them.  She tracked every doctor, every treatment, every day. This allowed her to stay...

Dr. Sung Choi is a pediatric bone marrow transplant physician at Michigan Medicine (University of Michigan). Dr. Choi joins us today to discuss the unique challenges for both pediatric patients as well as their caregivers. Of course, the approach differs with different ages. You wouldn't treat a 16 year-old the same way you would a toddler.   But there are some constants. For example, it's importa...

Today, we are joined by Kate Whitson, who talks about her husband Randy's ALL diagnosis.  Randy was 43, and their son was about to turn 5 and go into kindergarten. Kate discusses the unique challenges of being Randy's caregiver and trying to convey the situation to Max in an age appropriate way. In some ways, they were lucky that Max was too young to fully understand the situation, but they faced...

In 1996, Jim Bulger's wife Nancy was diagnosed with Diffuse Large B-Cell lymphoma. She went into remission after six months of chemo. But over two decades later, in 2017, Nancy received another diagnosis: follicular lymphoma. A later diagnosis showed that this had transformed into Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma once again.  One of Jim's roles as a caregiver was to run "interference" - to field call...

When Jean Heika's daughter Shannon was in college in 2013, she got sick. After extensive testing, they learned she had an aggressive, rare leukemia - blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN). Jean learned a lot over about being a caregiver over the course of Shannon's journey, including how to interact with doctors. As the primary caregiver, you need to be the patient's chief advocate,...

Today we have Cathleen S. Graham RN, CHPN, the regional manager for one of the nation's largest hospice organizations and the CEO of CannabisNurse.com. Cathleen is also a partner with Leaf Medic, Michigan's first online vocational school to offer cannabis industry training.  The information in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice. Please consult with your health care provider reg...

Diagnosis: Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL).  Merely 45 years old at the time, this wonderful lady has much to share in the past three years! Kelly has had two transplants, the second being a haploidentical transplant, a haplo. Get ready to be inspired.  Note: At the time Kelly recorded this podcast with us in the spring, she was in remission. Since then, she has had a relapse but we are so happ...

Strapped in with an amazing support system, James D. Bond, Sr. showed Multiple Myeloma what he was made of many decades ago. GVHD has also taken its toll but James beat that too. Second opinions, six clinical trials, four bone marrow transplants and a super attitude all played a  life-saving role in this happy ending. And we will let James tell you his Patient 007 story! James also shares the role...

Roy has a perspective on all of this that is humbling, real and evolving. "I've lost things and I've gained things," Roy shares. Listen in to learn more about this young man's profound strength, determination and authenticity. Roy reminds us that you can control what you can control, and you can let go of what you can't. You will find yourself rooting for Roy as you follow his journey as an AYA to...

Jordan "walks the walk and talks the talk." He will first share his amazing donor journey and also tell you all about DKMS and all they do to enhance the patient experience through the donor's gift of life. After all, we would not have life-saving bone marrow/stem cell survivors without donors.  The information in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice. Please consult with your hea...

Lew Christie is 71 years of age and was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) in December 2012, with a very pessimistic diagnosis. A worker at the scene of 9-11 in NYC in 2001, Lew believes his health issue stemmed from the carcinogens breathed in after that catastrophic tragedy. Settle in and get ready to be inspired and humbled by the journey of Lew. Lew received two transplants, one from...

The aim of a clinical trial is to safely, and in a controlled manner, study a brand new therapy, perhaps a drug, new drug combination, targeted therapy or medical device that hasn't been seen before. We might also be testing an already approved drug but for a different indication or disease. Sometimes a trial is designed to compare a new treatment with a standard treatment to find out which one is...

Pam was the eighth patient to be enrolled in a clinical trial at Northwestern Medicine and is in full remission.  Today, Pam volunteers as a peer support mentor for Imerman Angels and helps non-profits like ours by sharing her personal experience today.  This podcast will inspire anyone who has questions about CAR-T and/or Clinical Trials. The information in this podcast should not be construed as...

The information in this podcast should not be construed as medical advice. Please consult with your health care provider regarding your medical decisions and treatment. The listed resources are not intended to be endorsements. National Bone Marrow Transplant Link - (800) LINK-BMT, or (800) 546-5268. nbmtLINK Website: https://www.nbmtlink.org/ Check out our valued nbmtLINK resource books, some for...

Please note that the information that was available at that time is reflected in this podcast. As well, more than 50 cancer related COVID-19 questions were asked in advance, which were incorporated into the presentation and about 10 more were answered live on the call, all relevant to staying well physically and mentally (coping) during this unprecedented time. For more information, visit www.nbmt...

This special Lunch & Learn originally aired on Thursday, April 2, 2020. Pleae note that the information that was available at that time is reflected in this podcast. As well, more than 40 cancer related COVID-19 questions were asked in advance, which were incorporated into the presentation and about 10-15 more were answered live on the call, all relevant to staying well physically and mentally (co...

What is your definition of love? Feelings of happiness with each other? Feelings can be like waves though; they come and go. Therefore, love in the feeling sense is not enough. Love trust, respect, communication, fun and a sense of spirituality are the foundation blocks for a healthy marriage. Each is like a spoke of a wheel, if one is down the other wobble as well. In addition to these normal rel...

This​ episode features Anna DeSalvo, MS, CGC , who is a Patient Education Specialist with the Jason Carter Clinical Trials Program (JCCTP ) operated by Be The Match . In addition to keeping the JCCTP clinical trial search tool up-to-date and creating educational content, Anna regularly assists patients in any part of the clinical trial search process. Time to bust another myth, and maybe save some...

Palliative care does not mean hospice: it is illness treatment and it improves function. Join Shirley Otis-Green , an expert in this subject as she shares her wealth of knowledge and a plethora​ of resources. This is so important for people to understand. Quality of life is affected greatly for the better when patients and their families understand palliative care and its true purpose. A national...

This episode will set the record straight regarding cGVHD. Most cases will subside in 3-5 years. You won't want to miss this one from one of the world's leading experts on cGVHD. Dr. Steve Pavletic is an incredible resource for folks with cGVHD. Dr. Pavletic leads a chronic GVHD clinic and natural history study at the National Institutes of Health . Learn more about cGVHD, treatment updates, and h...

This episode features Dr. Effie Petersdorf , a member of the Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center ; Professor, Division of Oncology and Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, and Attending Physician, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance . This episode will focus on the many transplant options available to people, whether it is a family member or...

Time to bust another myth regarding age and transplant. Listeners will be relieved to hear about older patients receiving life-saving transplants and most often thriving post-transplant​. The likelihood of being diagnosed with a hematologic malignancy (blood cancers: most leukemias, lymphoma, multiple myeloma, etc.) increases substantially above the age of 60. In the past (more than 20 years ago),...

This episode will focus on CAR T-cell Therapy. Dr. H. Kent Holland , is board certified in the subspecialties of oncology and hematology. He is Medical Director of the Blood and Marrow Transplant Program at Northside Hospital and Co-Director of the Northside Hospital Stem Cell Processing Laboratory. Dr. Holland is also a Northside Hospital Leukemia Program physician. An expert on this topic, Dr. H...

Whether it's CAR -T questions, a need for a better understanding of clinical trials, cGVHD concerns, relationship/love issues, donor/age options or the truth on palliative care, we got you covered. Our interviews with the nation's leading doctors, social workers, and health care professionals will feature advice and expertise sure to help Bust Marrow Myths! For additional resources from the Nation...