The Journey From Pediatric Cancer Patient to Future Physician

It’s a day that Ryan Sathianathen will never forget. After an entire morning of waiting with no calls or emails, he assumed he would have to go through the entire process of applying to medical school again. But then, he saw a voicemail on his phone from an unfamiliar number.

“I called back and it was Stanford Medicine saying, ‘Congratulations, you got into the Stanford School of Medicine,’” he said. “I immediately called my mom and was able to share the news with people who were invested in my future. It was an incredibly cathartic moment.”

Cathartic, as it’s been his dream to become a hematologist-oncologist, but also because it felt like the next chapter of his journey with cancer.

A soccer injury that led to a cancer diagnosis

In January 2016, when Ryan was a freshman in high school, he got injured during a soccer game. The pain persisted, so he went to see the doctor, where he got a blood test. “My white blood count was really, really high, so it wasn’t just the physical injury. I had leukemia.”

Ryan was rushed to Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford, where they diagnosed him with CML, or chronic myelogenous leukemia, which is a type of cancer of the bone marrow. He spent eight days in the hospital before he was discharged. Everything seemed controlled until almost exactly one year later.

He woke up unable to hear, suffering from a bad headache. The cancer had spread to his cerebral spinal fluid. Ryan was hospitalized again—this time for months—as he underwent treatment at the Bass Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Diseases and a stem cell transplant.

“It was obviously a very difficult experience, not just physically, but emotionally and mentally,” Ryan recalled. “I was really mad and annoyed at the very beginning. But then with time, I learned to look for what I could learn from the experience and make the best out of a bad situation.”

Working toward his dream

Ryan had always been interested in science, but his time in the hospital propelled that interest into a dream of becoming a pediatric hematologist-oncologist.

“I realized my experience is something I can really use to help other patients who are like me in the future, but as a physician-scientist, combining my experience as a patient and deep interest in research to have the biggest impact,” he said.

In the years following remission, Ryan has taken concrete steps to realizing that goal. Most recently, that meant applying to the Stanford School of Medicine to get his medical degree. He’ll be starting his first year this fall.

“There are a lot of mixed emotions, but I’m really excited,” he said. “I’ve had a lot of experience on the patient side, so I’m excited to see how it will translate to the provider side.”

Finding help as a young-adult cancer survivor

These milestones have extra significance for Ryan, as a cancer diagnosis is especially disruptive in the adolescent and young adult (AYA) population. Pam Simon, MSN, CPNP, CPON, works closely with this group of patients as the program director of the Stanford Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer (SAYAC) Program.   

“AYA patients are different from child or adult cancer patients,” Simon said. “There are so many changes and developmental milestones that are supposed to happen throughout this age group, and they often don’t know how their treatment or experience is affecting them until they hit those transitions in life. Our program focuses on how we support them through those changes as they go through treatment into survivorship and beyond.”

This type of personalized care is important for those patients who are navigating graduation or a new job or growing a family. Ryan just had his first appointment with Simon in survivorship clinic. They talked about starting medical school and the long-term effects of cancer treatment that could present challenges.

“Cancer is very serious, and it can be easy to overlook how the diagnosis fits into everything in your life,” he said. “Packard Children’s was great at that overall, but it’s just another level when you know that someone is dedicated to making sure all the pieces are fitting together.”

This type of holistic care is something Ryan wants to bring to his patients in the future, helping other patients like him understand how they can move forward in their journeys.

“When I look back at it now, I see it more positively,” Ryan said. “One of the lessons I’ve learned is that things can quickly change and be taken from you, so I want to make the most of every moment.”