At 62, His Leukemia Did Not Respond to Chemotherapy. Five Years After Transplant, He Reached a Major Recovery Milestone

Summary: In 2020, 62-year-old Mr. Liu (pseudonym) was preparing for surgery for varicose veins when abnormal blood test results led to an unexpected diagnosis of acute myeloid leukemia. Older age, failure to achieve remission with chemotherapy, and serious complications during treatment left him feeling hopeless at times. With his family’s support, he came to Beijing GoBroad Boren Hospital, where Dr. Tong Wu’s team evaluated him and proceeded with a haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplant. After making it through the transplant unit, management of graft-versus-host disease, and years of follow-up, he has now passed the important five-year post-transplant milestone with stable blood counts and has returned to everyday life. His experience shows that age alone does not determine what treatment is possible, and that appropriate treatment, close medical care, and a strong partnership between patients, families, and clinicians can open new possibilities.

In hematologic care, five years of disease-free survival is often regarded as an important milestone toward clinical cure. For a 62-year-old patient with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) whose disease had not gone into remission with chemotherapy and who had once required ICU care, reaching that milestone was especially hard-won. After undergoing a haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplant at Beijing GoBroad Boren Hospital, he made it through those five years and recorded his own story of recovery - one shaped by perseverance and trust.

Photo from his five-year post-transplant follow-up

My Recovery Story - Facing Leukemia in My 60s and Reaching the Five-Year Milestone

In September 2020, I was 62. I had imagined retirement would mean spending time with my grandchildren and traveling with my family. Then one diagnosis suddenly put everything on hold: acute myeloid leukemia.

At the time, I was at a hospital in Beijing preparing for surgery for varicose veins that had bothered me for years. My preoperative blood tests showed a high white blood cell count and low platelets, and the doctor suggested a bone marrow test. I felt as though the ground had fallen away beneath me. At my age, chemotherapy was not only risky - it was exhausting. I did not achieve remission after either the first or second cycle. I even had a brief loss of consciousness and was admitted to the ICU. Once I stabilized, I was transferred back to the hematology chemotherapy unit, but I could no longer tolerate standard-dose chemotherapy, and the leukemia cells were still there. Lying in the laminar-flow ward and watching birds outside the window, I kept thinking: this cannot be how my life ends.

My wife and daughter actively searched for other treatment options. They asked around and eventually found Dr. Tong Wu’s team at Beijing GoBroad Boren Hospital. They came back and told me the hospital could take my case and that a haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplant was possible. My daughter held my hand and said, “Dad, let’s give it a chance.”

After one cycle of treatment at Boren Hospital, my bone marrow was MRD-negative. Then came donor matching, conditioning, and the stem cell infusion - a long process. I still remember the smell of disinfectant, all the tubes attached to my body, and the rash and diarrhea caused by graft-versus-host disease. I got through each of them. The hardest part was the month in the transplant unit. I was so weak that even taking a sip of water felt like a struggle. But I kept telling myself: now that I’ve chosen treatment, I cannot let my family’s tears or the medical team’s efforts be in vain.

The day I left the transplant unit, the sunlight felt especially bright. Dr. Yongqiang Zhao told me that the donor stem cells had successfully engrafted and my blood counts were beginning to recover. To me, it felt as though a new blood-forming system had been planted inside my body.

Over the five years since transplant, I have never taken recovery for granted. Regular follow-ups, a consistent routine, a balanced diet, and rehabilitation exercise became non-negotiable parts of my life. For the first three years, I would lose sleep before almost every checkup, terrified that the word “relapse” might return to my life. But with one reassuring test after another, my confidence gradually came back.

Today, I am 67. I can walk with my wife - often around 15,000 steps a day - take my granddaughter to and from school, and even play chess with neighbors in our community. Looking back on these five years, there is one thing I want to tell other patients: age is never, by itself, a reason to give up. Leukemia once brought me to the lowest point of my life, but modern medicine and my family’s love helped pull me back. I am grateful to the part of me that kept going, to the medical team for their expertise, and to my family for never leaving my side.

I have crossed the five-year milestone that, clinically, marks an important threshold toward cure.

To everyone who is still on this road, I hope you too will one day look up and see your own clear sky after five years.