Teen Marches on After Overcoming Advanced Blood Cancer

It was the summer of 2024, and Cameron Murphy, a teen from Erie, Pennsylvania, passionate about history and music, was gearing up to get his driver's license. But life took an unexpected turn for the 16 year old after a cancer diagnosis.

“My first thought was summer had just started, and now I was going to be in the hospital. Then everything really set in when they started talking about treatment,” says Cameron, who was diagnosed with advanced Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of blood cancer that develops in the lymphatic system.

Leading up to his diagnosis, Cameron experienced night sweats, back pain and swollen lymph nodes. After an abnormal blood test and ultrasound, he was referred to Cleveland Clinic Children’s, where doctors found a tumor blocking 80% of his trachea and confirmed Hodgkin lymphoma.

“It’s the news no parent wants to hear, but Dr. Zeno reassured us this is one of the most treatable and curable cancers in children,” says Cameron’s mom, Dara Murphy. She adds his care involved a multidisciplinary team from Cleveland Clinic Children’s, including pediatric hematologist-oncologist fellow Rachel Zeno, MD, pediatric hematologist-oncologists Ilia Buhtoiarov, MD, and Seth Corey, MD, and pediatric surgeon Gloriamaria Gonzalez Garcia, MD.

Cameron’s treatment began with multiple rounds of chemotherapy, followed by additional cycles that also included immunotherapy.

“Cameron had just turned 16 and was busy with marching band, swim class and running. Then everything came to a complete stop, since those treatments weren’t available back home,” says Dara. After treatment, however, his follow-up scans didn’t show the progress his care team had hoped for.

“Cameron had refractory Hodgkin lymphoma, which means his cancer didn’t respond to the initial treatment. At the end of therapy, he still had residual disease,” says pediatric hematologist-oncologist Seth Rotz, MD.

“I wasn’t nervous when I found this out because Dr. Rotz made it clear there were other options,” says Cameron.

From there, he underwent an autologous stem cell transplant, which involved collecting his healthy stem cells in advance. This allowed his care team to safely give him higher-dose chemotherapy to target remaining cancer cells. After treatment, his stem cells were returned to his body to help rebuild his blood and immune system.

“Cam was always ready to do whatever needed to be done. He was resilient, easygoing and still very much a teenager, too, asking when he could get back to playing paintball,” says Dr. Rotz. He adds Cameron’s treatment involved collaborating with multiple doctors, including colleagues in the adult oncology program.

A biopsy and additional scans confirmed the treatment was effective, and Cameron and his family were finally able to return home after spending nearly a year in Cleveland.

“I remember bursting into his room with balloons and saying, ‘There’s no Hodgkin lymphoma,’” exclaims Dara.

“After getting out of the hospital, my goal was to march in the Memorial Day parade with the band, so the first thing I did was start training for that. With physical therapy, I was able to take part, carrying my 40-pound drum,” says Cameron, who also received additional immunotherapy after his transplant to help lower the risk of any potential recurrence.

Along with band, the now 18 year old has returned to other hobbies, like paintball and video games, and has caught up on milestones cancer put on hold, including getting his driver’s license. His cancer remains in remission, and he’ll continue seeing his doctors for checkups. Both Cameron and Dara are thankful for the care team that’s helped get them to where they are today and hope sharing his story can help others.

“Having your son diagnosed with cancer is devastating, but the doctors and everyone around us made a difficult journey easier to navigate. Looking back on the care, kindness, love and support we received at the hospital, we couldn't have asked for a better team,” says Dara.

“It wasn’t easy, but the doctors did what they had to do, and I came out stronger in the end,” says Cameron.