Full Circle for a Patient with AML

Earlier this year I met a middle-aged man with newly diagnosed high risk AML. He spent a month in the hospital starting induction treatment and I got to know his wife and him very well throughout that process.

Thursday I was in the BMT clinic and saw that he was on our schedule. It was such a treat seeing him again! He's now post-allogeneic transplant and is doing really well.

The patient's wife thanked me for my care this summer and specifically thanked me for helping them negotiate the medical leave process with the patient's employer. She said, "Dr. Savage, you told me to tell his employer that he has acute leukemia, that it is a life threatening condition, and that it will require many months of ongoing treatment and follow-up to save his life. I told them this verbatim and they have given us all the time we've needed for his appointments."

I was so happy to hear this because I know that it reduced at least some stress for this family. It's always gratifying to know the ways big and small that my care has made a difference in the lives of patients with cancer.

Acute Myeloid Leukemia in bone marrow


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