Hey guys, Crymson here. I wanted to take a moment and educate you guys on a form of cancer that has affected my life.

Since not having a cell phone, I lost contact with family and many friends. But family most of all, so tonight I was rummaging in my room and found the number for my older sister Tina. So I figured, I should probably give her a call to check up on my nephew.

I heard the news that my nephew Skylar passed away. As some of you know, cause I told you, Skylar had a form of Leukemia. Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia or CLL for short. Which attacks and destroys bone marrow.

He was diagnosed in April 2009 at the age of 6. They tried treating it with radiation, but failed so in 2010 they began chemo. That worked up until the end of last year. His cancer didn't get better. According to my sister, my brother in laws dad donated bone marrow to Skylar. It was a successful transplant but he still needed more. So the doctors took bone marrow from another source. That did not work. Skylar developed the flu. With the type of Leukemia he had, his body was unable to fight the infection due to a limited quantity of white blood cells. On May 19th, my nephew was talking to his mom like a normal 8 year old. The following morning, May 20, 2011... Skylar was brain dead.

My sister made the decision to pull the plug on his life support. For 15 or 20 mins, Skylar's body was still alive. Without the aide of life support. So, the doctors, having seen miracles before, plugged the life support back in hoping that he would regain conciousness. A half hour passed, and Skylar flatlined.

So what exactly is CLL?

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is a cancer of the lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell involved in the body’s immune system. For about half of people with CLL, the disease grows and progresses slowly, and it may take years for symptoms to appear or for treatment to be needed. In fact, some patients may never need treatment for their CLL. The other half of people who develop CLL have a type of CLL that grows more quickly and need treatment sooner.

About lymphocytes

Lymphocytes are made in the bone marrow, the spongy, red tissue in the inner part of the large bones. Lymphocytes are found in the blood, lymph nodes, and spleen. There are three different types of lymphocytes: T cells, B cells, and natural killer (NK) cells. Generally, T cells fight infections by activating other cells in the immune system and by destroying infected cells, B cells make antibodies, and NK cells fight microbial cells and cancer cells.

About CLL

In people with CLL, the abnormal cells crowd other types of cells in the bone marrow, preventing the production of red blood cells (which carry oxygen), other types of white blood cells, and platelets (parts of the blood needed for clotting). This means that people with CLL may be anemic (because they do not have enough red blood cells), more likely to get infections (because they do not have enough of the type of white blood cells called neutrophils that fight bacteria), and bruise or bleed easily (because of a low level of platelets).

There are two general types of CLL, and it is important for doctors to find out whether the disease is caused by the overgrowth of T cells or B cells. The T-cell type of CLL is less common (about 1% of people with CLL have this type) and grows faster than the B-cell type of the disease (more than 95% of people with CLL have the B-cell type).

Always cherish your family members guys. No matter what you feel towards them. Because you never know when life will take them away. Cancer doesn't discriminate age.. Sex.. Race.. It can happen to anyone. Even someone you love. I will never hear his laugh again, I will never know his hugs anymore. But I will educate any and everyone in this disease and do everything in my power to help other children with disease, fight it and overcome it.

This one is for you Skylar.. I love you so much. And I will miss you forever.

Crymson - Out

Source for definition:
http://www.cancer.net/patient/Cancer+Types/Leukemia+-+Chronic+Lymphocytic+-+CLL