Note from LLS Executive Director

It has been over a year since I joined the LLS Team and it has been an amazing journey.  I have met the most inspiring, courageous and committed individuals of a lifetime.  They are the reason I get up in the morning and why I am excited everyday to come to work.  Raising money for any cause is hard work but what makes it all worthwhile is when you see the impact of those dollars all around you.  When a person who is diagnosed with a blood cancer is suddenly cured of that disease because they take one pill a day - that is truly inspiring.  On the flip side, when someone is diagnosed with a blood cancer where treatment is rigorous and life-threatening and affects the quality of life – it makes you want to do more!

I truly believe that blood cancer research will be the gateway to finding cures for not only blood cancer but other cancers and life-threatening diseases as well.  My sister is a 15 year breast cancer survivor.  Little did I know at the time of her long treatment process that she was benefiting from LLS research.  She was the recipient of a surgically implanted “port” which successfully delivered the chemotherapy drugs that saved her life.  It was through LLS research dollars that helped develop the port and is now used across all diseases when life-saving drugs must be administered on a regular basis.  In addition, she underwent a stem-cell transplant which is another extensive treatment that was developed through LLS research dollars.  She is alive and well today because of the generosity of our donors and the genius of our researchers.

It is my hope that everyone will look at an investment in the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society as an investment in the lives of millions who may one day need a cure for any kind of cancer or life threatening disease.  Keep running those marathons, cycling those highways, swimming those oceans, and hiking those hills – we will find a cure!

Patricia R. Thomson, Ph.D. serves as the Executive Director of the North Texas Chapter of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.