The Enemy

Red Blood Cells

A Look At Leukemia

I ran on some of the trails on Guunison city property, a series of rolling dusty tracks cutting across sage- and brush-covered slopes that afforded views of the campus of Western State College and the surrounding ranch lands. The run was pleasant and wholly unremarkable so I thought I’d take some time to talk about leukemia, the disease I’m working so hard to stop.

Leukemia is a cancer of the blood. A mutation in a patient’s DNA reprograms cells of the bone marrow (where blood cells are produced) and the blood cells that are generated do not function properly. The mutation causes these ineffective cells to reproduce more quickly than normal blood cells and crowds them out. Red blood cells, the kind that carry oxygen, aren’t produced as much so patients often feel fatigued. White blood cells, those responsible for immunity, don’t work effectively so patients are more susceptible to and have difficulty recovering from sickness. Platelets, the blood component that aids clotting, also function poorly so leukemia patients bruise easily and have complications resulting from injury.

Current treatments attempt to achieve complete remission. They include chemotherapy, and stem cell (bone marrow) transplants. Clinical trials are also underway to find new treatments with fewer side effects. More and more patients survive longer and with a greater quality of life than at any other time. The energy of thousands, is going to end the disease entirely. 40,000 athletes with Team In Training will contribute to the mission this year alone. With recent advances in research and technology we get closer to ending blood cancers like leukemia for everyone. Thank you for the support of my efforts. If you’d like to learn more about leukemia and ways to help further the mission to end blood cancer click here.