Team Eliott Against T-Cell Lymphoma

Hi Everyone. My name is Eliott Brown, I am 26 yrs. Old. I was feeling somewhat ill and decided to go in for a check-up. I had no extreme symptoms other than some swollen lymph nodes and a general feeling of being tired. After about 20 mins at the walk-in clinic, the doctor said that something was wrong and that I needed to go to the Emergency Room immediately for blood tests. The blood work that the doctors did came back ordinary with nothing too out of range. I was then referred to an oncologist. The oncologist reviewed me and recommended a CT scan. The CT scan revealed multiple swollen lymph nodes above and below the diaphragm as well as lung involvement with multiple spots. The next step was a biopsy of one of the nodes. Around this time I started to develop severe pain near my kidneys and a nasty cough. The pain was being caused by my tumors pressing up against my spine and other organs. I was referred to a surgeon and he decided to remove a lymph node in my groin area. The node was sent to Stanford and the diagnosis came back as stage IV Anaplastic Large T Cell Lymphoma. I now have been receiving Chemo treatments every 3 weeks and will face this regiment for at least the next 5 months until I am able to receive a stem cell transplant. My girlfriend Sarah has been a blessing by taking care of me and helping with everything. She is amazing at balancing her job, taking care of two kids, our dog Buster, and scheduling all of my appointments. Before I noticed a swollen lymph node on my neck and armpit, I was a relatively healthy guy working as an engineer. In my spare time I would carve wood signs on my CNC router, play with my dog Buster, and hang out with Sarah and the kids. Within 2 months of initially thinking my swollen lymph nodes were caused by a virus, I was given a cancer diagnosis of a very rare T-Cell lymphoma. I am unable to work due to the rigorous treatment schedule and as a result I have been struggling to keep up with the medical bills. Life does not stop for anyone, even when you get a disease such as cancer. I am hopeful about my prognosis and future and I look forward to living without cancer very soon. In the meantime, anything you can do to help lighten the burden on my family would be greatly appreciated. My parents and brother live 5 hours away and have been working non stop to help me in any way that they can. I have a wonderful support system of family and friends and I could not fight this battle without any of you. Thank you for everything and I will keep you posted as the journey continues. Love to you all.