Survivor Stories

Theresa Kelly, Stage IV

Date Diagnosed: 05/31/2009

When I was diagnosed, I had at tops 3 months to live. I was working and I thought I had a long life ahead of me. I was 49. First they tried Interferon. I almost died. Then it was biochemotherapy. Another disaster. I kept getting new tumors everywhere. I had many surgeries. The ones in my bowel and lung were the worst. I got in a clinical trial at the National Institute of Health. TIL. I went for a year, once a month, California to Maryland. It was a struggle. I finally had my leukocyte transfer over Thanksgiving in 2011. On my next trip, I was informed it didn’t work. I cried. It was awful. Then I tried Yervoy. I continued with tumor removal surgeries. I had a whopper surgery two years ago, huge tumors weighing over a pound. I had Yervoy again. So far I am NED. I try not to get depressed. After all, I am still alive. It’s tough with the neuropathy and hot flashes. Good luck everyone.