As 2022 began, Haley Ashton, a senior at Leonardtown High School, was overcome with fatigue. An accomplished dancer since the age of 3, Haley was used to working hard and having the energy to keep up with her dancing demands. She was also busy applying to college, finishing high school, and planning for the milestones ahead. Haley was diagnosed with mononucleosis, but rest and treatment didn’t help the fatigue. Given Haley’s family history of cancer, she received more extensive bloodwork to rule out other causes.
Haley was diagnosed with high-risk B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and began treatment in early February 2022. Jeffrey Toretsky, M.D., Chair of the CCF Scientific Advisory Board, and Chief of the Division of Pediatric Hematology at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center oversaw Haley’s treatment plan, just as he had little sister Myla’s treatment.
Since Haley’s younger sister Myla, now 12, was diagnosed in 2018 at age six with ALL, Haley was all too familiar with the road ahead. The family history went deeper still, as, incredibly, mom Denise, was diagnosed at age seven with the same B-cell ALL. Denise was treated nearly 40 years ago at Children’s Hospital and remains cancer-free today. Myla, now a seventh-grader in Leonardtown Middle School, has been six-years cancer-free. With mom and sister to support her and provide hope, Haley began her own battle.
B-Cell ALL in children typically presents as fatigue in kids younger than ten. Being 17 years old, Haley would have to undergo more intensive chemotherapy. There is no known origin of B-Cell ALL, and the odds of two siblings and a parent all receiving the same diagnosis are exceedingly rare. The family was genetically tested, and they learned that Denise carries a genetic mutation that one could live their whole live with and never know, or it could become a leukemia. Each of her children has a 50/50 chance of inheriting this mutation, and Haley, Myla, and brother Devyn, 16, all have the mutation. What “turns it on” for some and not for others is still unknown. Devyn remains without symptoms.
Between February and June 2022, Haley endured intensive chemotherapy and was determined to walk at her high school graduation- which she did! Following graduation, Haley was sidelined with COVID-19 and endured intensive chemotherapy in isolation throughout June. To make the burden worse, the Ashtons live St. Mary’s County, so the trip to Georgetown took two hours each way- a trip the family made almost weekly.
Haley was accepted to the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), but delayed her enrollment until January 2023. She was able to take online community classes in Fall 2022 and was determined to begin college, in person – which she did.
Haley began her college career while in active treatment. When she felt particularly tired, she received blood or platelet transfusions. Haley underwent long-term maintenance, including daily oral chemotherapy, and a lumbar puncture with chemo every 85 days. Haley celebrated her final chemo treatment in June 2024!
Haley has returned to dancing and is now enjoying more typical college activities. Despite the incredible odds, the Ashton family has a great sense of humor and stays focused on the future. We look forward to hearing about many new adventures!
CCF was honored that Haley shared her story at the 2023 CCF Research Symposium.
