" When you're dancing and laughing and finally living, hear my voice in your head and think of me kindly. -The Smiths "

A little about me...

Hi! My name is Frank. I am 20 years old. I am a student at UW-Madison. Some of my hobbies and interests... Capoeira and guitar.

Information about my illness...

In '86, when I was 7 years old, I was diagnosed with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia. I was treated at Children's Hospital-Milwaukee. I had radiation, chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant.

My words to others...

My suggestions to other survivors are... Try and give back. Most of you I'm sure you had plenty of people pulling for you and helping out when you were sick (inside and outside the hospital). Try and volunteer at a Children's Hospital. Share your experiences with patients and worried parents. Give them both hope. Make a sick kid laugh, it's one of the better treatments. Your reward comes with each smile you get back :-) .

The most important lesson I learned from my experience is... 1) Don't sweat the little things. 2) Everything is little. I relapsed twice, and basically went through it all. But I realize there is always someone worse off than me. So what am I complaining about? There's no such thing as a bad situation. It may seem like it at a given time, but wait a year and you will either find that things worked out okay (or for the better), or you have forgotten about it altogether. So there's no use worrying about something that you can't control.

A positive outcome from my experience is... The people I have met because of having cancer. I think that the doctors, nurses, and volunteers (especially those on 5th floor in Milwaukee :-) are some of the most special I've met. I think the greatest part of my having cancer was the introduction to One Step at a Time Camp. The camp is devoted to cancer patients and survivors, and I will be going for my 12th year this summer. An experience like this is invaluable to a kid, because they are able to relate to both campers and counselors alike, who have all been through the same experiences. An amputee or a bald head may be a common trait at camp, and there's never any questions, because everyone already understands. I've had my survivor role models as a kid, and now I can hopefully be a role model for another child who needs someone.

" At some point there is going to be a patient or a family who is looking to actually talk to one of us. I'm not a doctor or a psychologist, but I can be a friend.