Unexpected News

Last year, as I was driving through Morristown, I received a phone call from my husband. “Dr. Wang got the results back. I have B cell lymphoma.”

WHAT?

"B what? Basal cell carcinoma? Like skin cancer?” I asked, certain one of us was confused.

“No. B cell lymphoma.”

I pulled over to the side of the road and googled it. WebMD said, "If your doctor tells you that you have B-cell lymphoma, it means you have a cancer that forms in white blood cells called lymphocytes.” 

Blood cancer.

I called the doctor for clarity (was he saying the right thing? someone HAD to be wrong, this was NOT possible), only to find that Dave was right. B-cell lymphoma. The next day, we were back at Sloan-Kettering to meet with his hematologist-oncologist. It was all a blur. What had just happened? It felt like our lives got flipped upside down. This wasn’t in the plan; it wasn’t something we imagined would happen. But then again, do we ever? It’s always somebody else’s thing to worry about… until it was ours.

The only experiences I’d had with blood cancer were with a high school friend, Danny Dotterweich, who had Plasma Cell Leukemia, (I organized a candle fundraiser to help him in some small way) and my grandfather, who had Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. Both lost their lives.

So, this was not the news I’d expected, at all. I was in shock. My husband took it all day by day. His cancer was cutaneous B-cell lymphoma, which means it was confined to the skin. Treatment was scheduled immediately and he saw few side effects. He’d go for radiation before work each day, and only needed a few weeks of it. Outside of his producers, not many people knew. He didn’t feel weak, and he looked so healthy. We kept it really quiet, so that our day-to-day living was as normal as possible.

Despite the fact that he is on television, he’s very private. I am sharing his story, with his permission, for the sake of connecting, educating, and inspiring you to help me help others. Because others aren’t as lucky.

Everyone’s experience with blood cancer is different, and there are many different types. We can choose not to focus on, or pay attention to, this disease and hope that it won’t affect us. But each of us will have cancer touch us in some way, and the more we get involved, the more we take the fear out of the diagnosis. As we learn more about treating blood cancer, we learn more about treating all cancers. 

Last night, I was nominated to be Woman of the Year for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I am honored to be called to take this seat. I am ready to learn, and to educate, to bring awareness and initiate involvement. Literally, one year later, we have the opportunity to make unexpected news a little less jarring for others. I’ll be sharing more as I take this journey, and would love to have you join me. Keep posted.

To hear a little more about this, and why my team is called Tiffany’s Angels, click here.

#tiffanysangels2020

Photography: Melodee Solomon