Civic Warriors

Fighting and Surviving Cancer With Amanda Ferraro

Civic Warriors Episode 47 With The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

In this truly inspiring episode of Civic Warriors, we speak with Amanda Ferraro, a two-time cancer survivor, and patient advocate for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Amanda shares her story about her battle with cancer, how her cancer affected her mental health, and the strategies she used to get through it. She has advice for the family and friends of cancer patients and how they can support their loved ones during their cancer journey. She also shares the many ways LLS supported her during her battle with cancer. Listen to learn more about how she used WWE and Roman Reigns to help her young son understand what she was going through, ultimately leading him to write a children’s book and start a website called Cancer is an Imposter that helps children understand the battle of cancer!

Learn more about Brad’s LLS NJ Visionaries of the Year journey and how he earned Runner-Up honors!

Transcript:

This podcast was transcribed through a third-party application. Please disregard any misrepresentations.

Brad Caruso:

Welcome to Civic Warriors, brought to you by Withum. On this podcast, we bring the conversation to you, sharing, engaging stories that motivate and build consensus in the nonprofit community. This podcast is about the innovators, the leaders on the frontline of adversity, guiding lights in the nonprofit industry affecting change. And through their stories, we can all join forces to become civic warriors. Hey, warriors. Welcome to today’s episode of Civic Warriors. Brought to you by Withum. I’m your host, Brad Caruso, leader of Withum’s not-for-profit practice. Today on the podcast we have Amanda Ferraro. I met Amanda through the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Visionaries of the Year program, which I’m currently involved with, and Amanda was also a, a visionary of the year in a prior year. In a short time in knowing Amanda, the one thing I realized is that she’s probably the strongest person I’ve ever met, period.

Brad Caruso:

Full stop. Uh, Amanda’s a two-time cancer survivor, and she’s here today to share her story and has graciously agreed to share that, uh, so that we can help others who are going through that journey. Uh, and the fight against cancer. We often take for granted life in the, let the little things in life bother us on the day to day. Uh, but we have to realize that every day is a gift, and it is our responsibility to help others like Amanda and like others that are in the fight against cancer every day. So, greatly appreciate having you on the show today, Amanda. How you doing today?

Amanda Ferraro:

I’m doing good. Thank you so much for having me.

Brad Caruso:

Love it. So, I would love to start off, um, and, and maybe, uh, as, as much detail as you wanna share, uh, share your story about your battle with cancer, about, uh, about your life and, and, uh, how we got to where we are today.

Amanda Ferraro:

Okay. So prior to my cancer diagnosis, I’ve had seven brain surgeries, um, for an inoperable cyst, my cerebellum. So I’ve kind of had a medical journey before being diagnosed with cancer. Um, I was a mom. I was 29 years old. I went to the emergency room one night in March and was told I had mono. And, um, my white blood cell count was a little high, but they didn’t think it was anything really big that I needed to worry about. So I went home and my symptoms were getting worse. I was very lethargic. I was bruising easily. Um, I was like very, very pale. And so I had went back to the emergency room one night after putting my son to sleep because I just felt like I was gonna die. My heart was beating so fast and I just, I had no energy. So I went to the hospital, they ran some tests, and they found that my hemoglobin was a 5.2 and I had cancer.

Amanda Ferraro:

And, um, they found lots of blast cells in my blood and was told I needed to stay overnight because the next day I would need to see an oncologist. So after being told I had cancer that he said it was leukemia, but they needed to run more tests, um, and see what medication was best for me. Um, but I, I decided to get a second opinion. So we went from one hospital to another hospital where I kind of knew some of the doctors. They ran lots of tests and decided that the cancer was very aggressive, especially since I had been living two months with it and didn’t know. Um, so I decided to go to the National Cancer Institute in New Jersey where I live at Robert Wood Johnson, where I had all of my treatment done. So, like I said, one night I went to the hospital and I went from one hospital to another hospital to another hospital.

Amanda Ferraro:

And with leukemia, you have to stay in the hospital because it’s in your blood. So you have cancer in your whole entire body. So it’s from head to toe where your cancer is. They like to keep you in the hospital just to check all of the blood work and see if you need any transfusions or anything. So I started chemo, uh, May 17th, and I was in the hospital for 33 days. That was my induction chemo. And then, uh, four days into the chemotherapy, I needed an emergency appendectomy because my appendix was about to rupture. Um, so that was different because the hospital never had surgery on an active chemo patient before. So, you know, that was nerve-wracking for me because I was undergoing chemo. My levels were really low, they didn’t know if I was gonna bleed out. Um, so going through that, that was a very scary time within my cancer diagnosis, as well as just being diagnosed with cancer.

Amanda Ferraro:

Um, so everything went well. Surgery went great. I finished my treatment, um, and then I was able to go home. I did need four consolidation therapies. So after I went home, I would go back and forth to the hospital. So it started every other day. And then once my accounts went up a little, it would be every three days, then every five days, then once a week. And once I got up to the once a month part, I would go right back in for another seven days for chemotherapy and then do the whole process over again. So after the four consolidation therapies, it was February 14th, 2018. I was told I was cancer free. I got to ring the bell. Life was great. I was proud of myself, but I was more excited that I got to be home with my son. So, uh, we had a regular summer.

Amanda Ferraro:

We went to the park. We were doing things, went to the beach. Uh, one day I was on my stepdad’s boat and my face swelled up randomly, uh, and I was in a lot of pain and we were like, oh my gosh, it’s a tooth, like something happened. So I, we rushed back into the marina. I got in the car and dropped my son off to, to his dad. And I went to the emergency room. Well, I did have an abscess in my tooth, which was why I was swelling and everything, but they found one blast cell in my blood. Um, and the doctor at the hospital called my oncologist and let him know what was going on. And the oncologist said, okay, well let’s do a bone marrow biopsy to see what’s going on, and then we’ll go from there. So I had the tooth fixed.

Amanda Ferraro:

I went back to the doctor, had a bone marrow biopsy, and on September 11th, 2018, he told me that I relapsed with the AML. Um, he did give me a week to get all of my affairs in order. They did find a genetic mutation, um, called TP 53. I also had inversion 16, uh, but the TP 53 is a genetic cancer causing mutation. Uh, so he said that I had a 10 to 20% chance of living through the next induction chemo that I had. So I went in the hospital September 17th, I had another induction chemo, which was about 35 days. Um, and then during that time, the doctor told me and my family that the only way I would survive this disease would be to have a stem cell transplant because of the genetic mutation and because of the leukemia, that it would probably end up coming back, um, or I just wouldn’t survive, you know, five years.

Amanda Ferraro:

So we decided to go through with this stem cell transplant, and, um, we found a match and this person was gracious enough to say, I will save her life. So on November 21st, I went right back into the hospital, which was the day before Thanksgiving of 2018. And on, I did all of the chemotherapy that you can get. They give you lots of chemo, uh, kind of wiping out your immune system just to give you new stem cells. So on November 28th, 2018, I basically became a newborn and got a whole brand new immune system from an unrelated donor, uh, who was gracious enough to decide to save my life. And, uh, then I went through the process of having this stem cell transplant and learning my body all over again. Um, so, you know, usually they say the first 100 days are difficult because you’re having lots of medication and you’re basically getting a brand new immune system.

Amanda Ferraro:

So new allergies, your blood type can change. Um, you’re just basically learning everything all over again, what your body does, like, what it doesn’t like, how it reacts to certain things. Um, and then there’s something called graft versus host disease where basically it’s the donor’s immune system will see your body as a foreign entity because it was, it’s not yours to begin with, and sometimes it attacks it. Uh, so I have graft versus host disease and my bones in my joints, which is CGVHD because it’s chronic graft versus host disease. And, uh, I have it in my stomach, gut, GVHD, uh, and sometimes in my mouth, uh, my teeth are deteriorating from the GVHD. Um, and there’s side effects of it, and there’s a lot of side effects from the chemotherapy that they had before. And just having cancer, cancer in general, you know, has a lot of side effects. But that’s basically my cancer journey. <laugh>,

Brad Caruso:

It’s a long journey. And, and, and even, even after the fact of, um, going through all that, you know, still experiencing, uh, side effects of the different treatments that occur, still you know, you’re still experiencing a lot of, of, uh, negative effects. However, on the very positive side, you know, you, you’ve made it through that and, and certainly, um, certainly are, are, uh, living well now, other than a lot of these complications. But, but I can’t imagine the, the time going through all of this and the, the mental fortitude that you have to have to, to make it and to continue to, to move forward. Um, and I, I know one of the things that we, we talked about a little bit before, but I’d love to comment upon, um, is, is, you know, mentally, like, what, what is it like going through, going through from the cancer diagnosis, through the treatments, through the ups and the downs of all of it? Um, what, what was that like going through that? What, what are some of the things that, you know, you were thinking when in, in the, when the mental health side, I imagine it’s, uh, it’s, it’s, it’s not talked about it enough, I think, from my, my perspective.

Amanda Ferraro:

Yeah, absolutely. So, um, I’m an AYA, so adult and young, adult and adolescent. Uh, I was 29 when I was diagnosed. So basically from like 18 to 40. Um, and if you think during that time, what happens in your, like adult life? So you’re starting a family, you’re graduating college, you’re going into your career, you know, big things are happening, buying a house, all of these things. And then you get thrown a cancer diagnosis in the middle of it. So I was a mom, I was a stay-at-home mom to a three-year-old little boy, and with three words, you have cancer. My life completely changed because I had to stay in the hospital, you know, for over a month. So for me, I got very depressed because I missed my son. I wasn’t allowed to see him. He felt abandoned. He, you know, was crying on the phone, you know, begging for me to come home.

Amanda Ferraro:

And, you know, sometimes he would say, mom, I’m sorry I was bad. Come home thinking it was his fault that I wasn’t there. And that was so hard for me because I wanted to be strong for him, and I wanted to be strong for my family, but I was upset that I had cancer. I was mad that I had to be in the hospital away from my son. And I just didn’t understand like what my life was going to be like if I would survive, if I would make it home, you know, if I was able to go through the treatment and if it worked. And, you know, mentally it was very draining. But it’s also everything else that comes with the cancer diagnosis, it’s mentally, physically, and emotionally a tornado that happened. I mean, you’re thrown into this whirlwind of, you know, tolls to get up and back and forth to the hospital and the gas that it takes to do it, and the good food that you’re supposed to eat and the medications that, you know, insurance covers this medication, but only a 30 day supply. And if the doctor decides to change your medication in the middle of a diagnosis, you know, you already got this medication until the insurance won’t cover this, and you have to, you know, pay for this. And you’re seeing other doctors on top of that. So copays are more expensive. And, you know, all of that goes into the mental health because it takes such a toll on your life. And you’re right, it isn’t talked about enough, the mental toll that cancer has on the AYA community.

Brad Caruso:

Yeah without question. And, and you know, when, when you’re going through that, um, you know, what were some of the strategies, what are some of the things that, that you did to stay positive, right? Because obviously there’s, there’s all this negative squirreling around, there’s, there’s so many things, and I, and I think a lot of people externally don’t also know how to react. So I mean, what were some of the things that, that you did that you felt, uh, were helpful or you felt that helped you through that, uh, as, as you were going through this?

Amanda Ferraro:

Yeah, so actually I think maybe the second or third day that I was in the hospital, I had an absolutely amazing social worker up at the hospital. And she had reached out to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Uh, I had a representative come to my hospital room and hand me tissues because I was crying. And she was just so amazing. Um, she just talked to me and was honest with me and gave me some books to read, but let me know all of the things that LLS could do to help me. So one really big thing for me was the peer-to-peer support. Um, I was young and I really felt like I was the only person in the world who couldn’t see, see their kid, and was going through my diagnosis and being able to connect with someone who was around my age, who had a kid who was going through treatment was really big for me because I didn’t feel alone.

Amanda Ferraro:

I was like, okay, other people are going through this. And I could talk to somebody and express to them what I was going through, but I wasn’t afraid to like say, Hey, this is crap. You know, because it’s not a doctor. It’s like somebody just like me. And I felt such a connection to that person. Um, and then at once I was diagnosed with cancer, I also started a Facebook page, um, where I would write every single day. I have a very large extended family, and, um, I kind of wanted to keep them up to date with what was going on. And instead of a hundred text messages and phone calls every day, I decided to start a, a Facebook page so I could share my journey and, and let them know what I was going through. Um, and that was big for me because there was so much support when I would do live videos.

Amanda Ferraro:

Uh, but I was also open and honest with them. So I shared my mom shaving my head for, you know, when I decided that I wasn’t gonna lose my hair, I was gonna cut it off myself. And I shared that on live video, and it’s still up there and, and, you know, people can see it and family members shared it with other people they knew that were going through a cancer diagnosis. And then I started having other cancer patients reach out to me and say, wow, you are so inspiring. Like, I thought I was the only person going through this. Like, thank you for sharing this. Um, so that was really helpful for me because it felt like therapy almost where I wasn’t keeping everything I was feeling inside. I was letting it go. And once I kind of put it out there, I felt so much better. So really the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society really started me having a voice, and I kind of used that to expand on me sharing my cancer journey.

Brad Caruso:

No doubt. And I, I, I love that they were able to connect you. LLS was able to connect you on, on a peer-to-peer level, because you’re right, like the last thing you want is someone saying, oh, I understand what you’re going through, but, but do people really understand what you’re going through? Probably not. However, if they’re either in the same boat or have experienced it in the past, yeah, that’s actually true. They do know what you’re going through, and they’re probably more likely to listen because they’re like, they knew that that’s what they wanted was someone just to listen, someone just to hear what they were having to say. And, um, that’s, you know, I think it’s, it’s, um, you know, it’s a very strong case too that, that you did share that. Right. And, and you know, you mentioned that it was empower, empowering to share that, which is great, but it’s also scary, I would imagine to, you know, you’re, you’re also putting, putting your, your, um, life out there for the public to see.

Brad Caruso:

I imagine that, you know, there’s probably some reservation about that, but at the same token, you know, you did it and it, it was a positive and, and I’m sure a lot, you know, the second people see that everybody, I think everyone in the world really does wanna help people. I think a lot of us just don’t know how I, I think that’s, that’s what I boiled it down. I know with myself sometimes I, I just don’t know how. Um, and I think that there’s a lot to be said about that. Um, my, my grandfather was diagnosed with cancer and we found out a little bit later on in the process, um, he didn’t share it with people, <laugh>. And, uh, you know, I, I’ll be quite honest, when, when we heard that, and I was only, I think I was 20 at 20, 22 at the time, I was, I’ll still consider myself a kid at that time, I didn’t know how to react.

Brad Caruso:

I didn’t know what I should say. Like, like do I try to, you know, talk to my grandma about it, my Mimi about it? Do I try to console ’em about it? Do I ask them questions? Do I not ask them questions? Um, should I be supportive? Should I, should I like, leave them their space? Like, you know, and I, I felt I, you know, later I feel bad about it that I probably wasn’t more, cuz I, I was, I had a reservation, I wasn’t sure what to do and wasn’t sure, you know, how, how to go about that. Um, so, so really, I mean, what I, what I’d, you know, be curious now is as you, you went through it, um, you know, you have family members, you have friends, you know, what, what advice do you share to family members and friends when, when they have a loved one who has cancer, who’s in that battle, you know, how should they be thinking about it? Or from your perspective, you know, what do you, what do you, what do you wish someone did or didn’t do you know, as you were going through it, <laugh>?

Amanda Ferraro:

Yeah, so I like to, I like to say that, you know, when someone is diagnosed with cancer, it’s not just them diagnosed. Um, you know, it takes a toll on the whole family. So, you know, my son, uh, my fiance, uh, his mom moved in with us to help take care of my son. Uh, my parents who had a kid who, you know, was undergoing cancer treatment, who was told, you know, she might not make it, you know, that’s hard. I like to share with people that sometimes when you’re a diagnosed with cancer, you don’t wanna talk about it. It can be hard, you know, it can be mentally, you put a wall up and you don’t wanna talk about it and you just wanna go through your journey. And some people like to talk about it and get it off their chest. So ask them if you want them, you know, do you need help grocery shopping?

Amanda Ferraro:

I’m gonna come over and I’m gonna do your laundry for you. I’m gonna take your kids to the park one day I’m gonna take ’em to a movie. They can stay at my house, um, send, you know, meals on Wheels over. They have lots of things for, uh, cancer patients where you could drop off food. You can have different people make different food, have a schedule and have different family members drop things off, off to the house. Uh, you have DoorDash now you have Uber Eats, you could send them something. Little things like that, people don’t think about. Uh, do you need help going to the doctor’s office? Do you want me to sit there with you when you’re going through chemo? Um, funny little packages. My friends would do zoom meetings where they would do karaoke and I would watch from my hospital bed laughing.

Amanda Ferraro:

Uh, they would dress up. I had different wigs at the hospital where I would, you know, everybody would wear one. We would have different ones and we would, um, have just talks about things we were going through. Uh, like every Saturday at 11 o’clock we would have a Zoom meeting, um, you know, try to do a schedule because it’s not, like I said, it’s not just a cancer patient, it’s their family as well. So GoFundMe’s, are really awesome, you know, and it’s help financially, you know, definitely is amazing because you do go through such a financial whirlwind diagnosis with cancer, but it’s like everyday life that they need help with. Does their car need gas in it? Does it need to go to the mechanic shop? Do they need a car wash? Do they need help cutting the grass? Just little things around the house that need to be done.

Amanda Ferraro:

Um, getting their mail for them, bringing it in. Uh, these are all things that, that don’t seem like a lot, but for somebody who’s having cancer treatments and doesn’t feel well and taking medications and, you know, their family’s busy or they have kids, it can be so much help just doing the little things for them. And I like to share that with family members and, and people who are diagnosed with cancer. What do I tell my family? You know, those little things help out a lot. Um, but sometimes people don’t like talking about a cancer diagnosis and that’s okay. But don’t tell them to be brave. Oh, a lot of people like to say, be brave. You could do it. You’re so strong. Yes, I know I’m gonna be brave. Obviously I’m going to be as strong as I can and try to get through this.

Amanda Ferraro:

Tell me something I don’t know. You know, just share with them like, Hey, you know what, it does suck. It’s okay to say it. I’m sorry you’re diagnosed with cancer. This sucks, but I’m gonna be there for you even if you don’t wanna talk about it. Being an open ear is so helpful to so many people. And just letting people know that you understand that this time in their life kind of stinks, but you’re, you’ll be there for them. You could rely on me. What do you need? Even if you don’t wanna talk about anything and you just wanna talk about the news or you wanna share a TikTok video or like anything, just be there for them. I think that’s one of the biggest things that I advocate for.

Brad Caruso:

I love that. Just listen, just sit in the chair and be a presence. You don’t have to say anything. If you wanna say something, you know, you’ll react or, or you know, you won’t. But, but really at the end of the day, if you realize that it’s about you, not them or or the person realizes it’s about you, not them. And at the end of the day though, you know, we all don’t know, but I think everybody can relate to that and everybody can relate regardless of what you’re going through, that sometimes you just want someone to listen. You just want someone to do the simple things and you don’t need to ask. Yeah. Go collect, go, go get the mail. Yeah. The, the reality is that, that, you know, having that listening voice, um, and, and just knowing that, you know, you’re not gonna have the answers and, you know, people don’t wanna hear cliche lines, people just want friends.

Brad Caruso:

People want family. People want people there with them to, to support them. And I appreciate you sharing that cuz you know, it’s a powerful thing and you know, not everybody necessarily experiences it, but I think everybody in, in everybody’s life, they experience it either a family member or a friend, personal connection, a loved one. I mean, there’s always, always, someone’s always affected. So that’s such powerful advice and and appreciate you sharing that from, from an LLS perspective, I know you mentioned the peer-to-peer support, um, you know, what are, what other ways I was l s involved in your, in your cancer journey? Were there, were there other ways that they were supporting you? Other ways that, that they, uh, you know, representatives of the, their organization were helping you?

Amanda Ferraro:

Oh, absolutely. So, um, they have copay assistance which helped greatly with a lot of the medications or going to the pharmacy and picking things up, uh, going to different doctors. You know, I had the copay assistance. Uh, they have financial grants that they, you know, were able to donate, donate to me. Um, and that helped with, uh, so much gas, tolls, food, rent, um, every, everything really. And I, it’s just the LLS is so amazing. They’re such a great organization. Um, it’s not really just about the money to them, it’s about the person. And I really like to say LLS is like family to me because I relied on them so much during the first initial, you know, diagnosis. And then when I relapsed with cancer, you know, they were like one of the very first phone calls I made, um, because I knew they were gonna be there for support for me, and I knew that I could rely on them and I knew that they understood kind of what I needed and what my journey would look like.

Amanda Ferraro:

And they do have like a twenty four seven call line. You can call in whenever you want to, um, talk to somebody. Uh, they’ll send you resources. They have books that you can learn about your cancer diagnosis. They have journals that help you, you know, with questions for your doctor and to write things in where you may have a question. Uh, medication journals that you can keep. Um, they’re just so wonderful. They have so many resources and they really did help me out, like I said, peer to peer support, um, financially, emotionally, you know, they really were a shoulder to cry on for me. And I’ll never forget that. And I am such a big advocate for LLS because they just, a lot of people like to say, okay, yeah, they’re great for leukemia and lymphoma, but what people don’t realize is, um, 34 out of the 40 medications since 2019 that were approved by the FDA came from LLS scientists.

Amanda Ferraro:

70% of the medications that are out there today were made by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society research teams. A lot of the medications for childhood cancers, um, breast cancer, pancreatic cancer started from LLS researchers that made these drugs that work better for breast cancer. So when you’re supporting the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, yes, a lot of it is for blood cancer patients, but, but the research part of that helps across the board and they’re really changing cancer patients lives. So for me, LLS is a huge support for all cancer patients and they help out with so much. And they’re so supportive, not just for me, for my family as well. They have support groups for, you know, caregivers and, and people who take care of cancer patients. They have a great staff. Um, and they have wonderful events that, you know, spotlight cancer patients that really make you feel special. And they’re just absolutely amazing.

Brad Caruso:

It’s so great to hear. Um, you don’t always hear the personal stories directly on how organizations help and, and even like the exponential or the tertiary impact that organizations have, like you said, it’s, you know, it’s one thing to support the cause of your organization. It’s another thing when that cause also supports other causes or, you know, in this case, you know, there are multiple different types of cancer out there that have varying different effects. But, you know, the research they’re doing affecting blood cancers affects many other types. And a lot of that research is groundbreaking and, and has a lot of impacts on a variety of levels. And so, you know, knowing that there’s kind of third, third order consequences in a positive way of everything that’s done, you know, dollars multiply to a degree. Um, it’s great to hear, it’s great to hear that, that they were there for you. Like there, there are resources that were on the ground helping you as you were going through it. Like that’s also something you don’t always hear. So, uh, appreciate you sharing that about, about LLS itself and, and, and, and the work they do. Um, switching gears a little bit, just, uh, I know in talking with you something that I, I felt was I, I thought was awesome. Um, so you, you have a connection with the, the wwe or you, you, you, you like the WWE.

Amanda Ferraro:

Oh yeah, yeah.

Brad Caruso:

Tell, tell us a little bit about that and, and, uh, and your friend in the WWE.

Amanda Ferraro:

Yeah, <laugh>. So, um, I actually have my, uh, my belt here.

Brad Caruso:

Oh, there you go. <laugh>

Amanda Ferraro:

<laugh>. Um, so my son loves wwe. He loves, uh, stone Cold and Roman Reigns. And uh, you know, he had a trampoline. He loves, you know, pretending he’s a wrestler. Um, so when I came home from my second induction chemo, it was October 22nd, Monday night Raw was on when I got home. And on that particular episode, Roman Reigns, uh, announced that he had relapsed with leukemia and he had to denounce his title, um, because he had to, you know, go in for treatment. My son watched that live feed and it changed the trajectory of how my son understood my cancer. And it really made him realize that, hey, my mom has leukemia too. Like, oh my gosh, my hero has leukemia. Like he is a strong wrestler. My mom must be strong too. And going further, like I would explain to him how I was feeling through wrestling terms.

Amanda Ferraro:

So he was four years old and, you know, telling him that, uh, I had lowered back pain and, you know, the chemo, you know, was making me feel sick. He didn’t really understand that. So I would say, oh, mommy, feel like I got suplexed, or I would feel like Roman Reigns Superman punched me. And he saw the wrestlers on tv like pretending they were hurt or, you know, oh my God, he hurt me so bad. So when I would say, mommy feels like she’s hurt, he would say, oh, okay. It feels like, you know, mommy got suplexed by Roman Reigns and you know, her back hurts. So we correlated wrestling terms to how I was feeling. And my son didn’t see my diagnosis as something bad. He saw it as like, I was just like Roman Reigns and I was going through what he was going through and, you know, may, uh, my mom could be a wrestler.

Amanda Ferraro:

And it changed really, it Roman saved the relationship I had with my son. He really felt abandoned. And when I came home from the hospital, he was like, iffy because he didn’t know if I was going back and then I would have to go back for consolidation therapy. And he was like, okay, my mom’s leaving again. And I would be in the bed cuz I wasn’t feeling well. So when I was able to show him like, Hey, Roman’s going through what I’m going through and, you know, pretending we are WWE superstars and you know, just sharing wrestling terms with him, it really just changed how he saw me. And that was amazing for me as a mom cuz I was able to really just open my son’s eyes to what cancer was through the WWE. And I know it wasn’t easy for Roman to publicly announce that.

Amanda Ferraro:

Like I said, some cancer patients don’t like talking about what they’re going through and he could have easily said like, I am going through something and um, I will be back, you know, whenever. But he chose to announce that he relapsed and if I could say anything to him, I just really want to let him know that his announcement was able to save the relationship I have with my son. We were actually able to meet him via Zoom through the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society for the random acts of light that they have. Um, and that interview was amazing. And, you know, we told him how amazing he was and he told Isaac how strong I was and, you know, we really correlated a lot of what LLS does to h him being alive today and, and me being able to share what I do through my journey.

Amanda Ferraro:

And it was just an amazing moment and I, I’m just so thankful to WWE for that and I’m so thankful to Roman Reigns, um, and LLS. But yeah, the WWE being able to let him announce that was amazing. We actually were gifted tickets to go to WrestleMania, um, which is great. I have a picture next to a poster. Um, and he had, you know, the Leukemia Awareness Ribbon on his shirt, um, and he raised awareness, uh, about the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society as well as leukemia, which was great, you know, for leukemia survivors to be like, oh, yay. You know, like, I can wear a Roman Reigns shirt and I can feel like a superhero just like he does. And that was, that was pretty awesome. But yeah, WWE is pretty amazing to me.

Brad Caruso:

That’s phenomenal that you, that you found that connection occurred and, and, and that he res you know, he responded, right? Like I think that’s, that’s even the icing on the cake too, that, uh, you know, with all the followers on social media and everything going on, like the fact that he, he responded, it’s phenomenal and, and just, just knowing you have that connection, you know? Yeah. Like, like being able, especially to a young, young child, like drawing a connection to something that they follow on TV or they follow in in life is, oh yeah, you know, I got power bomb through a table. That’s how I feel. They’re like, oh, I, yeah, that sounds terrible. So you must not be feeling good, huh? <laugh>.

Amanda Ferraro:

Right. And especially being four years old. <Sure.> You know, not understanding, but actually it really did change the way he saw things. Uh, he actually ended up writing a book, uh, called My Mom Got Sick and he started his own website, uh, called Cancerasanimposter.com. Um, and we just have videos of kids talking about cancer and what cancer is to them and, um, you know, different books that parents can give their children to read or read to them. His book is super easy. He was five and a half when he wrote it. Um, it has little smiley faces in the book because, you know, when children are little, we say, here’s the smiley faces from like one to five, how are you feeling? Sad, happy, like medium. So we put smiley faces in the book so that, you know, it was easier for kids to understand how he felt when mommy was sick or had sleepovers at the hospital.

Amanda Ferraro:

And we, it’s very relatable. Like I said, he wrote it, um, through play therapy and we published it for other cancer patients to have, um, as well. And when he wrote that book, I started my website that I have called Cancer as an Asshole. Um, cuz it is, and you know, it’s just a taggy a line that people can say, Hey, you know what, cancer is an asshole and it’s relatable across the board. It doesn’t matter what cancer you have. And I have hundreds of resources on there for cancer patients. I kind of want it to be like a one stop shop things from lawyers, because sometimes you don’t get disability right away and sometimes you don’t get social security, sometimes you have to fight it. Sometimes insurance doesn’t cover things. Um, medical expenses from, um, different vacations that are out there. Um, I know sometimes like adults don’t get certain things.

Amanda Ferraro:

I know there’s a lot of charities for children, but sometimes Aya community needs things also, but there isn’t, or they don’t think there is. Uh, but there are cruises out there and vacation places and you could nominate cancer patients. Um, and different things like needing a walker or needing, um, you know, port supplies or a cane. I have everything, uh, listed on the website and I just really want to give back to other people. Um, my stories on there, I have, uh, articles I’ve written, I have a TED Talk, I’ve done a lot of, my journey is on the website as well. Um, but I just really found through what I went through, that there isn’t a lot of awareness in certain places, especially emotionally, mentally, there’s not so much advocacy that happens. And I feel like every cancer diagnosis is really going to, uh, mentally hit you in the heart. It’s life changing, you know, a lot of times cancer is life and death. So I just want people to be able to find the resources they need and find help that they can get. And, uh, that’s why I started my website.

Brad Caruso:

I love it. I love it. And, uh, we, it says audio only, but, uh, Amanda’s wearing a hat that says Cancer is an Asshole. So I like that. And, uh, yeah, check out her website, you know, her, her, her full story is on there, share a little bit here, but there’s also, uh, a lot more on there and a lot of, I I checked it out, a lot of resources. Uh, you know, I think there’s a, a blog post on there. There’s just a lot of information that you can access. So if you’re going through it, if a family member is going through it, uh, check out, check out Cancerasanasshole.com, you know, certainly it’s, uh, it’s a good place, good resource on a variety of levels. Um, and, and I I think it’s, it’s just so powerful and, and phenomenal that, that your son wrote a, wrote a book about it and, and just the impact that that has. I mean, you know, n now it’s, it’s, you know, a young loved one writing a book about it, sharing it with the world, and, you know, the impact that then that’s gonna have, I mean, I’m sure there’s thousands of other people in a similar boat and, uh, for him to write that is, is great. The, the, what was the name of the book again? Just so and how to a and how if someone wants to, uh, buy it or access it.

Amanda Ferraro:

Yeah, so it’s called My Mom Got Sick and it’s on, uh, cancerisanimposter.com.

Brad Caruso:

Awesome. Yeah, so everyone checked that out. Uh, definitely a good resource and, and share it. You know, I’m, I’m gonna buy it and share it with my kids. And, you know, even if we don’t have it, it’s at least it gives some, some alert, you know, identification or some understanding that, you know, they, at some point in their life, they’re gonna have friends that go through it or friends’, parents that go through it or things. So.

Amanda Ferraro:

Yeah, actually we have it in our public library, uh, in the town we live. Um, the hospital, uh, Robert Wood Johnson has a library and, uh, they purchased a book to put in their library, uh, and my son’s school has a copy as well.

Brad Caruso:

That is so great. So, um, as far as, uh, supporting, I know, um, as part of the visionary of your program, uh, I’m going through that right now. You know, we, we set a goal to raise 75,000 for LLS, and I have a feeling that we’re gonna exceed that number based on a lot of conversations. And, you know, I hope everyone can listen to this podcast and hear the, the benefit of why those dollars are important and what they go towards and how they help people. Um, but you know, from our perspective, we’re absolutely gonna, um, gonna do our best to, to raise some dollars there. We set a lofty goal. But, you know, certainly from our perspective, we cannot, you know, we can’t achieve it alone. You know, we need everybody’s support and we’re gonna be sharing resources of how to donate in the, in the, uh, near future through, uh, through the LLS site.

Brad Caruso:

But, uh, yeah, really excited about it. And, you know, it didn’t really hit me until I, until I met you, until I started like talking to some of my family members and hearing how many people are impacted by cancer. Like, it, it didn’t hit me. It was kind of like, okay, you know, we’re gonna do this, but now I’m like, we’re really gonna do this. Like, we’re, we’re gonna do our, we’re gonna put all our resources to make sure that I talk to every person I can. I go out there and find as many people as I can to raise awareness to this. And, you know, and, and you know, I do have a personal connection to it. There is like history there, but, but you know, hearing your story just, just brings it home. Help makes you realize how important it is to help others, how important it is to hear your story, um, how powerful and strong you are for sharing that story.

Brad Caruso:

And for, you know, you very easily could have not <laugh> and you know, the, I think about the multiplying impact you’re having and, and you should feel great about yourself or how many other people you’re helping by doing what you’re doing. So, you know, for, from my perspective, and Amanda, you know, we really appreciate having you on the show. You know, thank you for joining us on Civic Warriors. Thank you for graciously sharing your story. Thank you for, you know, being kind to just spend time with us and, and share it. So, you know, thanks so much for being here.

Amanda Ferraro:

No, absolutely. Thank you so much for having me. I really hope you do exceed your goal. Um, but I, I want people to realize that yes, it is a campaign to raise money and you know, there’ll be a winner at the end. Um, but don’t look at it as I, I want to win. Look at it as you’re changing lives, LLS truly saves people’s lives and there are millions of people that are out there living with cancer who have had cancer, who are survivors. Um, I’m four and a half years post-treatment and I still rely on the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society for, um, different things, peer-to-peer support. They have support groups. My mom goes to a support group through LLS. Um, they really truly help cancer patients. And like I said, the drugs that the LLS researchers make help, not just leukemia and lymphoma, they help all other cancers as well.

Amanda Ferraro:

Um, you can look up, you could Google the statistics, um, but when you are donating even just a dollar, that dollar can be the difference between a cancer patient receiving medication and not. Because when you need to purchase medication, there’s no coupon code, there’s no, sorry, I don’t have all the money. Can I borrow it? You know, if you don’t have that $1, you’re not going to get the medication. So every penny counts. And even if you can’t donate hundreds or thousands of dollars to a campaign, you know the change in your car, donate that because that can be life changing for somebody. And don’t think any amount is too little at all whatsoever, because when you’re going through cancer, it definitely doesn’t matter if it is $1 or a hundred thousand.

Brad Caruso:

Every little bit counts and every little bit helps a person. And, you know, sharing the story helps a person sharing the sharing information about LLS helps a person. Sharing a dollar helps a helps another person. And, you know, that’s why we’re here. That’s why I, I love, um, having you on. I love being able to share this and, you know, to all our warriors out there, you know, thank you for listening. You know, it’s, it’s heroes like Amanda, that, that, that help greatly. And it’s, it’s all of you that help greatly. Uh, as Amanda said, every little bit counts, every little bit goes towards, uh, a wonderful cause that’s, that’s doing their best to fight something that is an unfortunate truth and reality. And, you know, cancer sucks. But at the end of the day, we’re all, you know, we’re all here to do our best to help others and, you know, love that, uh, love that we can share this information. So thanks so much everybody for listening. Thanks for being here, Amanda, and, uh, we look forward to having everyone back another episode of Civic Worries in the Future and continuing with our, our LLS campaign that we’re going through. So thanks so much, Amanda.

Amanda Ferraro:

Thank you.