Our 2011 Honored Heroes

Katia Syrovatka, 19 years old

Hi my name is Katia, I'm 19 years old and I'm a cancer survivor.  My story began in January 2007 when I was down at a ski academy in Vermont for the winter.  After arriving, I quickly began to feel very exhausted and I developed pains in my legs and ankles.  I brushed these symptoms aside and convinced myself that they were due to the grueling routine and physical training that I was subjecting myself to.  My symptoms persisted and eventually reached a point where it was too physically strenuous to walk up the stairs, to the point where the pains in my bones were so painful they would keep me up at night.  

On a trip back to Montreal I went to the doctor but didn't think that they would be able to tell me anything I didn?t already know.  We were convinced that what I was experiencing was due to the changes in my lifestyle.  I was given a referral for a blood test, I had never had one before, but I was reassured by the doctor?s certainty that there was nothing wrong with me.  The line at the hospital was long and after having waited my turn and done the blood test, my mom and I got back in the car, heading for Vermont.  

Just before we reached the border we got a call telling us to come back.  Unsure of what lay ahead and what the future would bring, we made a U-turn and drove back to Montreal. Nothing could have prepared us for the news that came next. It was in the emergency room that I was diagnosed with ALL, acute lymphoblastic leukemia. I began treatment the next day.

The drugs I was given were harsh and brought about many uncomfortable side effects.  Treatment continued for several more months but after the results of a bone marrow aspiration in the early summer of 2007, the doctors found that there were still a significant number of leukemic cells in my body. The next best option was to do a bone marrow transplant.

This is a complex procedure and requires a lot of prior conditioning and treatment as well, a bone marrow donor is required. A perfect match donor is ideal, however there is only a 25% chance that a sibling will be a perfect match.  Sure enough, my brother Tomas was a perfect match, and in September 2007 his bone marrow cells were harvested and transfused into my body through an iv line.  The transplant was a success and for two years following the transplant my life was back to normal.  

It was in November 2009, when at a routine checkup, that my blood tests indicated that the platelet level in my blood was very low.  A few weeks later a bone marrow biopsy was performed since my blood tests hadn't improved.  The biopsy revolved that there were traces of leukemic cells in my body.  

Another transplant was scheduled for March 2010 and my brother was to be the donor again.  This transplant was successful as I am now back at school and doing the things that I enjoy most.  It is thanks to my amazing family, friends, doctors, nurses and those who find this cause very close to their heart that I am where I am today.

Thank you to all participants for your amazing endeavors and support towards this very important cause.  It is through your endless efforts and commitment to this cause that so much progress and research into finding a cure for blood cancers has already been made. 

 

Keep up the astounding work!  One day we will find a cure! 

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Francis Lagarde, 5 ans

It was the summer of 2010 and we were getting ready to celebrate the fourth birthday of my son Francis when he came down with a fever.

He was getting more and more tired. Then, he developed a bruise on his stomach for no apparent reason and his stomach started to swell. He wasn?t in any pain but just to be safe, we took him to emergency for consultation. All this took ten days. Ten days between the first signs and the diagnosis by the emergency physician?leukemia.

Our lives broke in two that night. Now we have our lives before leukemia and our lives since leukemia. At this point, Francis is in remission. We have reached the ?marathon? stage of his treatment protocol. I use this term because it is a test of endurance. In order to avoid a relapse, chemotherapy has been going on for two years, resulting in immunosuppression and several secondary effects.

Each week, we go to the hospital for a treatment. He has to endure changes of bandages and injections, he takes disgusting-tasting medication and he accepts wearing a mask to protect himself and others. The success of Francis?s treatments depends on a lot of things. The personnel who care for him, the people present who support and distract him, the patients who have gone before him and participated in advancing research, as well as the donors who finance this research.

This is why research must continue to advance. So many avenues remain to be explored.

We?Francis and his family?thank you for your exceptional solidarity.

-Mélanie Drouin, Francis' mom