


My name is Gema, I'm 26 years old and I'm from Almeria. On April 2010 I was diagnosed chronic myeloid leukaemia.

Gema, chronic myeloid leukaemia patient

It all started with some colds and throat infections. My blood analysis showed high white blood cells, but they related it to the infections. Because I was always sick, I took the analysis to a haematologist and he gave me the news: I had chronic myeloid leukaemia.

When they told me, I couldn't believe what was happening. I was only 23 years old, I had never had anything more serious than a cold and they were telling me that I had leukaemia. In that moment I started asking myself a lot of questions: why did this have to happen to me, what was going to happen from now on, was something bad going to happen to me... I was scared.

All of my family, friends and boyfriend supported me and cheered me up. At first it is hard to acknowledge, but then you realize how lucky you are to be able to keep enjoying life, to keep being with the people who surround you and love you and that every day is like a gift.

Since they diagnosed the disease I have been undergoing treatment. I am lucky that my type of leukaemia can be "covered up" with a pill. I lead a normal life: I go to the gym, I go out with my friends, I enjoy my family... and the last analyses indicate that my disease is in remission.

 Gema, CML patient, with her boyfriend

With my boyfriend Miguel, and Runa

I want to thank my parents and my sister for being with me and specially my mother, who had a harder time than me. I also want to thank my boyfriend, for cheering me up in the worst moments, my family and friends, May and Manolo, for being with me in the good moments but also in the tough ones and helping me, and my haematologist, Mr. Francisco Giménez Garrido, because he is a great doctor and he always makes me see things easier.

Gema, CML patient, with her friends

With my friends in a country house

I encourage everyone to become bone marrow donors so that other people have the possibility to go on with their lives and can dream of a future like I dream of mine. I also dream that one day they will discover a cure for leukaemia.

Gema's sister donating bone marrow

My sister, donating bone marrow, and my cousin, nurse and bone marrow donor.

Webpage updated 07/09/2019 16:37:26