I was diagnosed at 19 with stage 3B Hodgkin lymphoma. I was in the middle of my sophomore year of college and at the time had no idea what lymphoma was - or even what a blood cancer was.
The following weeks were an absolute whirlwind of events, including biopsies, blood work, and my port placement. I began ABVD chemotherapy a week after my 20th birthday and underwent six rounds - a total of 12 treatments of chemo.
I consider myself very lucky that my physical side effects were quite minimal. However, psychologically cancer took a great toll. I have since become an advocate for survivors, especially young adult survivors, in relation to cancer and mental health. I was declared in official remission on August 17th, 2015 - just over two years. With that in mind, the cancer may be gone for now but it has left a traumatic impact on me and the way I live my life and I aspire to share the truth behind cancer and how it effects a persons mental health as well as physical.