By Katy Lucas
September Seventeenth.
An ordinary day for most. But for 20-year-old Brooke Patton, that was a good day to
move on.
Brooke Patton was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia on January 16, 2012.
Since then she has gone through four rounds of chemo, one round of total body
radiation and a stem cell transplant.
But on that Monday in September Brooke had a good reason to be happy. That was
the day she was deemed cancer free and for the first time in eight months her and
her family didn’t have to worry any more.
“Being cancer free is an amazing feeling,” said Patton. “My first thought was this is
finally over, no more worries! My family has worked so hard and been together with
me every step of the way. “
What now?
In Brooke’s words, “Being diagnosed has opened my eyes. Life is so short and we
take so many things for granted and I now appreciate every moment I am at home
with my family living the great life I have.”
She says that she is ready for life to begin again and has already set some goals for
herself, goals that had to be put on hold while she received her treatments.
“I have enrolled in online upgrading and hope to attend school next fall. I have also
started a workout class so it’s almost like a fresh start!”
Patton also looks forward to the day when she is healthy enough to walk out into the
pasture, catch her patiently waiting horse and return to the event she loves most –
Barrel Racing.
Thanks to an organization called the OneMatch Stem Cell and Marrow Network,
these dreams can become a reality. OneMatch is dedicated to finding patients a
match for stem cell and marrow transplants when a match could not be found from
a family member.
Brooke received her stem cell transplant in June after months of waiting for a
treatment. Although she has a long way to go, she is now on a steady road to
recovery.
“The cancer can come back at any time and I am not officially in remission until I am
clean for five years. So we still keep very humble in hoping each day just continues
to get better,” said Brooke.
Patton stressed the importance of the support she received throughout her journey
to recovery. “The amount of support I had was amazing. I have had so much support
from my family, boyfriend and his family and the rodeo community.”
From Rodeo Classifieds, we wish Brooke the best of luck with the rest of her
recovery.
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