At the end of each year, it's important to take a few moments to reflect on the past 12 months, thinking of the moments that warm our hearts and those that help Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center continue our work toward a world without cancer.
We are so grateful to the patients who allow us to share their stories, providing insight into what life is like for someone who has endured treatment. We are honored to share the insights and progress made by our physicians and researchers, who work tirelessly every day to develop better treatments for our patients.
As we prepare to enter a new year, we invite you to reflect with us on some of our favorite blogs from 2025 and to remain steadfast in the hope for a cancer-free future.
1. Thyroid cancer during pregnancy: Megan's story
October 28, 2025
"Roswell Park saved my life. They saved the life of my baby," says Megan Woodward, reflecting on her experience being treated for aggressive thyroid cancer while pregnant with her second child. "I get to continue to parent my two young children and show up for my family every day."
2. Painting is a stress-free outlet for Dr. Hennon
April 23, 2025
“I might go years in between painting something. I just get motivated,” says thoracic surgeon Mark Hennon, MD, fresh out of surgery, still in scrubs, adding that he doesn’t remember what originally made him want to pick up a paintbrush. “I think I did a painting in 2004 when I was in my general surgery training. I try to create something that I’ve seen and that I visually want to recreate. It’s a nice little outlet.”
3. Could psychedelic drugs relieve cancer pain?
July 8, 2025
It’s estimated that about half of all cancer patients experience pain caused by the disease or the side effects of treatment. Relieving that pain can be complicated by the fact that emotional distress and anxiety often accompany a cancer diagnosis.
4. Meet Eddie, our 2025 Tree of Hope lighter
December 2, 2025
If you ask Edison “Eddie” Golden how he wound up getting chemotherapy at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, he can tell you all the details.
5. Beware of buying fake cancer drugs
January 23, 2025
In 2023 the counterfeit drug trade was estimated at more than $4 billion a year. The World Health Organization categorizes these fake drugs as either “substandard” or “falsified” medical products. Substandard products may be expired or have failed to meet quality standards.
6. Acute myeloid leukemia: Lynette's story
October 14, 2025
“I can’t say enough good things about Roswell Park. They treat me so well. Everybody in there, these nurses, they hug me every time I come in. They’re so amazing. It’s like you have this support system of amazing, wonderful people that make you feel like you could do anything. It’s just phenomenal.”
7. Young adult cancer survivors: Looking back 10 years after diagnosis
April 17, 2025
Since their diagnoses and treatment at Roswell Park, all four women have gone on to build successful, happy lives: Alicia still works on her family farm and was able to go back to raising pigs, in addition to becoming a mom. Allie is now a lead teller at a credit union, Ashley teaches fourth grade and Mary works in internal communications at Roswell Park and has a daughter who is nearly a year old.
8. Getting patients home sooner helps speed healing after stem cell transplant
August 7, 2025
Most Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center patients treated with stem cell transplant can now leave the hospital weeks earlier than they could have in the past — and for many, that means a quicker recovery in the comfort of home.
9. Two leukemia diagnoses before age 6: Vada's story
July 1,2025
When this round of treatment ends, Vada will have just turned 7 years old; her baby brother, not yet born when she was diagnosed the second time, will be a year old. “We’ll be celebrating so much then,” Analisa says
10. Cell therapy offers new hope for patients with multiple myeloma
September 25, 2025
Multiple myeloma has long been a challenging diagnosis to treat. Even after achieving remission, the disease has a tendency to recur and patients often need long-term therapy. But for the first time, doctors are finding a course of treatment that might result in what could be considered a cure.
Editor’s Note: Cancer patient outcomes and experiences may vary, even for those with the same type of cancer. An individual patient’s story should not be used as a prediction of how another patient will respond to treatment. Roswell Park is transparent about the survival rates of our patients as compared to national standards, and provides this information, when available, within the cancer type sections of this website.
