Everything started when I was 21, back in November of 2019. I was working as a server at the time and I was saving for my first apartment with my girlfriend. I went to the doctor to see what they would say about some issues I had been having. I was feeling nauseous and weak, getting chills, and my skin was yellow. It got to the point where I could not do anything by myself, but I was told I had pneumonia. I was given some antibiotics which made my symptoms worse, so I went to the ER and was told then that I had leukemia. My world came down in pieces. I thought I was going to die.
At first, my care team told me that I would need chemotherapy for three years. However, after six months of treatment, I became a candidate for a bone marrow transplant. My transplant took place on September 27, 2020. After that transplant, I spent two years trying to regain my strength and rebuild my life. Unfortunately, the cancer returned. I was devastated because I didn’t want to go through all of that again, but something inside me said that I could handle anything and that every challenge is a lesson to become a better version of myself. I accepted the challenge again and became cancer free again after a second transplant in November of 2023. I feel that God has always been here, giving me the strength to keep going and learn from every obstacle.
About a year after my second transplant, my spleen started hurting a lot. I waited a few days, but it didn’t get better. It just kept getting worse and worse until I had to return to the hospital, only to find out that the leukemia had come back a third time. The treatments have been a very tough and long process. I am in severe pain, but I am always grateful to God because I have a team of doctors who help me and because I know that everything happens for a greater purpose.
Andres’ LifeList:
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