Rachel Bonistalli

Originall written on July 20, 2007:

As I shared in my previous message, my cousin John Bonistalli is living with Leukemia. He wakes up each day like the rest of us with a smile for his wife and beautiful daughters and kind words for everyone, but has something a little extra weighing on him as he goes through his day -- he is fighting a battle to keep his Leukemia in remission. This is a battle that started on April 4, 2003 as John was proud to be smoke free for two years and his dear wife Dana was expecting their second child.

John had been fighting chronic sinus infections for several months and the doctor suspected it was a deviated septum so he had an appointment to check it and discuss repairing it. John shared "My doctor said I looked tired and he decided to run some routine blood work. I anticipated it would say I was, like usual, a little anemic. The blood work came back with an extremely high white cell count, but he didn't want to worry me so he ordered a second CBC. The results were not a fluke."

John continued, "I found myself just moments later that morning sitting in an oncologist's office with my mother by my side. Unfortunately my wife, Dana, was sadly sitting in another doctor's office at the same time -- her obstetrician's. She would soon learn that she was having a miscarriage. This would be our second loss. We had been so blessed to have a beautiful 2½ year old daughter (Isabella) and we hoped that someday we would be able to provide her with a sibling to share her life with. My mother and I were soon given the fateful news -- that I had Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML). By this time, Dana had joined us in the doctor's office and we all cried together. We were told that, without treatment, my life expectancy was 3 to 5 years."

That was John's dark day, but family and friends quickly came to John's aid and his best friend Chris gave him the phrase that helped him start his campaign against Leukemia "The rally flags are up, we are heading into battle." John was determined not to lie down and let cancer ruin his life.

Then light began to shine through the darkness. A new oral drug, approved in 2001, was showing tremendous results with CML patients. He soon began that drug, Gleevec. Within a year, John was in remission and we had a big party. In 2005, John and Dana were again blessed with new life in the arrival of Amelia (Mia). John's prognosis is with continued treatment with Gleevec and without unforeseen complications, he could maintain his remission for 40 years.
So, with my cousin in my heart and the many who can benefit from my efforts on my mind, I train on -- strides to save lives.

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