Five Years Later, This Leukemia Patient Is Thriving

The simple pleasures of life — a swim in the backyard pool, the joys of tending a garden, a casual get-together with friends — are not lost on Carol Andrade.

A retired school librarian, Ms. Andrade embraces life with the gusto of someone who was once told she would have only a few weeks to live without treatment for leukemia. It was a shocking diagnosis that seemed to come out of the blue. Yet Ms. Andrade knew exactly how, and where, she wanted to get treatment.

Ms. Andrade, 74, was the very first patient to undergo an allogeneic stem cell transplant at Baptist Health Miami Cancer Institute. In July 2019, shortly after the Institute established its program, Ms. Andrade received a transplant from an anonymous donor, replenishing the blood stem cells in her bone marrow so she could produce healthy new blood cells.

“I felt like I was being treated in a state-of-the-art place from the moment I got there,” says Ms. Andrade, who lives nearby in Kendall. “I felt like I got the absolute best treatment.”

Stem cell transplants are most often used to treat people with cancers that affect the blood, such as leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma and myelodysplastic syndromes.

Remaining cancer-free for five years is considered a significant milestone in cancer circles. But Ms. Andrade is also very proud of another number. “I am number one,” she declares.

Treatment Advances for Blood Cancer

Over the past few decades, the landscape of blood cancer treatment has undergone a remarkable transformation. There is now a deeper understanding of the molecular and genetic basis of blood cancers, developments in immunotherapy and targeted therapies, and new, innovative lab techniques. The advances are responsible for improved patient outcomes, reduced toxicities, fewer side effects and a better quality of life for those facing these complex and challenging cancer diagnoses.

“We are thrilled that Carol is back to living a full, happy life. Our hope is that every patient has great quality of life and stays in remission,” says Guenther Koehne, M.D., Ph.D., deputy director of Miami Cancer Institute and chief of blood and marrow transplantation and hematologic oncology. “I’m very optimistic for Carol. She was our first allogeneic stem cell transplant patient at Miami Cancer Institute more than five years ago. She had no side effects, continues to have normal blood counts and has a fully functional immune system.”

Guenther Koehne, M.D., Ph.D., deputy director and chief of blood and marrow transplantation and hematologic oncology at Baptist Health Miami Cancer Institute 

A pioneer in stem cell transplantation, Dr. Koehne developed a technique to manipulate donor cells to reduce the risk of graft-versus-host disease, a life-threatening complication of transplantation. His work has not only improved outcomes but has also made it possible for more patients, particularly elderly patients who previously would not have been considered for transplantation, to receive the treatment.

Graft-versus-host disease can occur when white blood cells from the donor (the graft) perceive cells in the recipient’s body as foreign and attack them. This problem can cause damage to the skin, liver, intestines and many other organs. However, donated stem cells can be treated to remove the white blood cells (called T-cells) that cause graft-versus-host disease.

“The manipulation of the cells is very innovative and can only be performed at institutions that have sophisticated labs such as Miami Cancer Institute’s,” Dr. Koehne explains.

Dr. Koehne, who continues to lead research to further refine care, has overseen a significant expansion of Miami Cancer Institute’s program. Since Ms. Andrade, the Institute has treated more than 300 bone marrow transplant patients. The number of consultations has more than quadrupled in that time, as has the number of highly qualified physicians on the team.

“Thanks to clinical trials, more treatment options are available and patients are living longer. More patients require more physicians and more staff,” Dr. Koehne says. “It’s not possible for any one physician to achieve the goals of our bone marrow transplant program. It takes everyone from search coordinators to nurses and advanced practice providers, laboratory and pharmacy staff and many others to have a successful program.”

Staking the First Place in Line

Ms. Andrade anxiously awaited the launch of Miami Cancer Institute’s allogenic bone marrow transplant program, determined to get her treatment there with Dr. Koehne, who came from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York and was internationally renown.

When it came time for her transplant, delivered intravenously, medical personnel lined up to watch, recalls Stella Stitsky, Ms. Andrade’s life partner of 40 years. “It was a big achievement,” says Ms. Stitsky, who took photos. “When Dr. Koehne put the stem cells into her, we had a big audience. All the nurses and doctors and everyone on the floor were watching through the window. There were maybe 12 or 15 people in the room. It was a big deal that she was the first one.”

Ms. Andrade’s recovery was gradual. A stem cell patient is at highest risk for an infection in the three to six months following their transplant, and their immune system may remain weak for up to a year, sometimes even longer.

Ms. Andrade says she was highly confident in Dr. Koehne’s skill, but what she remembers best was his kindness, sense of humor and optimism. She says she includes him, his assistants, the nurses she encountered and all the staff at Miami Cancer Institute in her prayers each day.

“I'm thankful for those people because they brought light into my life, and I saw hope in their faces,” Ms. Andrade says.  “One of the things I was told is, ‘There's no reason you can't live a normal life if this is successful.’ So I said, OK, let's go for it. I'm going to do everything I can to make it successful. That was my goal.”

Ms. Stitsky, a retired science teacher, still marvels at her partner’s positivity and resilience. “She's five years out and she's got perfect blood work. Her hemoglobin is better than mine,” she says.

Ms. Andrade now strong enough to mow the lawn, something she relishes, and to swim laps in her pool. Last spring, she was able to visit family in Massachusetts for the first time since before her diagnosis.

“I just feel really at peace with everything. We're enjoying our retirement. We get to do whatever we want every day, with anybody we want to. And it just feels so free,” Ms. Andrade says. “I appreciate every single day. I’m really thankful every day I wake up feeling good.”