At the age of sixteen, I was diagnosed with stage II Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I remember my diagnosis like it happened yesterday.Five days before starting my junior year of high school, I was told that there had been a change in plans. I originally started my junior year but two days later I was told I would have to get minor surgery to get a portacathe for the chemotherapy and that Monday I was on my first round of chemotherapy. One of the scariest times of my life because it was all experiment and the rate at which the chemicals were entering my body was too fast, so suddenly I became very, very dizzy. This is a dizzy that I can aasure not a lot of people have felt, I felt like my head was going to spin off th socket and fall on the tile and my body was burning thought I was going to turn into ashes. However, my next fifteen rounds of chemotherapy all were smooth sailing, apart from the terrible side effect. When I was first diagnosed, I was a bit cynical and bitter. Only once I asked, "Why me?", but then I realized this was not the type of atitude that would help me win this battle. If I could offer any advice, it would be for the family and patients to maintain a positive attitude and remain strong throughout these times in one's life. Cancer is a serious disease and should not be taken lightly. I have made it my top priority to dedicate my time and investments in fundraising for research so that someday soon we can all rest assure and be cancerfree. Also, I love to dedicate my time to patients. You can find me visiting patients and their parents and educating them about Hodgkin's disease and how to survive, as I said above, remaining strong and maintaing a positive attitude, are only two of the factors. Now at the age of ninenteen, I have been in remission for two years, however I will always remember this time in my life. It was not just a time of sadness for me. During this time, my whole outlook on life was altered. So much was learned during this time that has defined me as a person today. All I am asking for is a minimum of $10.00 from each family and a minimum of $1.00 from each individual. Thanks for your time and I hope one day we can all be cancer free.