Paula Rosado

I admit to being a little dark. Not my skin or my hair, but my humor. Ten years of chemotherapy and sometimes all I need is a laugh. It’s this...

I never know how people will respond to information about us having blood cancer. When we talk about it and share our experiences, I’d like to say that most responses...

There are times when I feel comfortable enough to share my diagnosis and my symptoms with someone. I’ve been treating this chronic myeloid leukemia for ten years now and often...

“You don’t look sick!” I’ve been told over and over again. Most of my pain is not readily visible. My oncologist had told me that I had won the “cancer...

I got the most marvelous advice from a friend recently in just three simple words: lower your expectations. We were talking about time and how we spend it. Ten years...

People are often surprised when I mention that I am a cancer patient. People say, “You don’t look like a cancer patient.” But what does that mean? I’m not too...

When I went to elementary school I was not a big fan of Santa Claus. My neighborhood was diverse. We had social housing, low-income housing, and some lovely and pricey...

In case you missed it, check out Part 1 of this series! It had been five years of chronic myeloid leukemia. I started one TKI oral chemotherapy, then a chemo...

I’m a chemo failure. It was 2012 when I was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukemia. I soon found out that fighting leukemia is complicated. For me, this disease is always...

I look at my calendar and I see a day to celebrate just about anything! I do have some favorites. January 1st is National Hangover Day for us Canadians -...

Living with cancer. We talk about how to manage it, how to work around it, and how to be happy in spite of it. Recently a friend of mine did...

I was talking to a cancer agency social worker when she said, “So, what do you do to relax?” I ran through the list of the things I do to...

There's a certain type of courage to facing cancer. It's a very individual experience. Leya Elijah’s article, The Pressure to be Brave, really got me thinking. What is Cancer Courage?...

Have you had skin issues with your chemo? In 2012, I started oral chemotherapy for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). As my body slowly began to accept the treatment something was brewing underneath...

Read Part 1 of Paula's story: Cue Vampire. The immunologist was speaking. I could hear the words, but I couldn’t process them. I felt numb. Cold and numb like, well...

Within three years of daily oral chemotherapy, I was wearing wide-brimmed hats, long sleeves, and large-rimmed sunglasses. I was losing pigmentation, or so it seemed to me. I was turning...

I’ve never been without a pet. Until recently. It’s a lonely feeling. Something is missing and I search for it in little creaks and noises when my mind is wandering...

Recently a friend of mine and I were talking about how to navigate relationships. It’s a conversation that more and more people are having, but to cancer patients, it’s a...