Duke Student Suffers from Severe Aplastic Anemia
A student from Charleston recently spent a somewhat frustrating and painful month indoors due to his severe aplastic anemia. Rob Willis is being treated at the Duke University Medical Center and can not so much as step outside or go into the sun due to his condition.
Willis is a senior at Capital High School and after two very intensive chemotherapy treatments is living day to day with severe aplastic anemia. Aplastic anemia is a group of diseases that effect the bone marrow and blood cells in the body. Although chemotherapy is a common treatment for the illness, in more severe cases, such as with Willis, the treatment doesn't always help.
However, after his time spent inside, doctors prepped Willis to receive a bone marrow transplant hoping that it would be the treatment that would return him to health. And they were right.
Patient Receives Support from Friends and Family
Since his surgery, Willis has been on the road to recovery from his severe aplastic anemia and was recently crowned homecoming king by his peers.
"It was a great honor. It really showed how much everybody was supporting me," says Willis. "It made me feel a lot less distanced than I had to be. It's unimaginable how many people have taken notice of what has happened and been there."
Every year thousands of people are diagnosed with severe aplastic anemia and Willis is now devoted to educating people more about the illness and how they can lend a helping hand to those who are living with it.
What Caused His Severe Aplastic Anemia?
In many cases, doctors are unsure as to what caused the patient to develop severe aplastic anemia. In Willis' case it was undetermined though his mother, Becky, says it was discovered when an ankle injury from soccer continued to plague Willis. Continuing infection and bleeding are two major signs of aplastic anemia since it effects the white and red blood cells.
