I was three when I was diagnosed with Leukemia for the first time. I don’t remember much of that treatment because I was so young yet my parents said it was very difficult time. Luckily, after 3 years I was cured and we thought it would never come back. However, eight years later, when I was 13, after moving to Tokyo, Japan the cancer returned. We moved to Tokyo because we had missionary friends there and felt like God was calling us there.
Not wanting to undergo Japanese treatments, where patient comfort isn’t the norm, we flew back to the U.S. and started treatment here. I remember some parts and not others. What I remember most clearly is being poked by needles a lot because the chemo they were giving me made me nauseous so they had to give me IV fluids. I also remember doing a lot of crafts, Lego, and watching nature documentaries on Netflix. That’s where my love of nature, and ultimately my career choice for marine/fisheries biology came from. After tow months of chemo, the doctors realized that to save me I would need a bone marrow transplant to get rid of the cancer. My sister was a perfect match and got to be my donor. It took a long time to fully recover but every April we celebrate my new “birthday” and are so thankful that my transplant was successful and that I am still here today.
This challenge affected me because I was not able to do much of anything during that time. Doing schoolwork was impossible during those times so it set me back a little bit. But I pushed harder than most people my age in those years of chemo, transplant and recovery. It was a long process as I also got what is called Graft vs. Host Disease of the muscles (GVHD), about a year after my transplant. Once again I had to overcome sickness as now the transplanted bone marrow was attacking my body, deteriorating my muscles and bone. I couldn’t walk for months and was in a wheelchair. To resolve it, they gave me high-dose steroids for another year, which damaged my knee so they did surgery on my right knee. After I healed from the surgery, I could walk again, but not well. I went through 6 months of physical therapy and I grew stronger and can now walk again.
Through all of this, I am strong in spirit and can and will push through adversity. I am excited to move into college and use these experiences to help motivate my education and also help others along the way. One way I would like to do this is to share my love of the ocean with others. I have always had a special connection to the ocean that has brought me great joy. That is why I want to study marine biology and converse the oceans and marine species for future generations to enjoy.
~~~Abigail Schreiber