When 19-year-old Molloy College freshman Sara Dawber felt abnormally tired
and congested one morning in March 2015, she never dreamed Cohen Children's
Medical Center would become her new "dorm room" for the next five months.
T
hat morning, Lisa Dawber, Sara's mother, drove
her to visit her primary care provider. Blood tests
showed a high white blood cell count. Sara's
doctor recommended she visit Huntington Hospital,
where additional tests resulted in a leukemia diagnosis.
Sara was placed in an ambulance, hooked to an IV and
sent to Cohen Children's.
"My daughter was never sick a day in her life, so when we
learned she likely had a life-threatening disease, our entire
world turned upside down," said Ms. Dawber. "It was the
start of our journey into the pediatric cancer world."
At Cohen Children's, two pediatric hematology/oncology
specialists — Rachel Kessel, MD, and Andrew Doan, MD
— met with the family to explain Sara's diagnosis and
the treatment plan that would save her life.
"My whole world changed," Sara said. "I knew I had to
do whatever it took to ultimately survive. I channeled
the energy I used to have as a cheerleader to keep my
spirits up."
Diagnosis Directly to Treatment
Sara had acute myeloid leukemia, a cancer that causes
bone marrow to produce unhealthy blood cells and
progresses quickly. She also had a genetic mutation with
a required protocol of three rounds of chemotherapy.
After round one, her cancer went into remission, which is
rare when a gene mutation is present. She went through
the second round of treatment, just in case other
leukemia cells were in hiding, and her body responded
so well that the third round was deemed unnecessary.
But she wasn't out of the woods yet. A bone marrow
transplant was planned next.
Sara Dawber, acute myeloid leukemia survivor
Room to Heal Room to Heal Room to Heal Room to Heal
Room to Heal
CohenChildrens.com
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kidsFIRST | Fall 2016
lifelines at the bedside
