
Tatiana Schlossberg, the daughter of Caroline Kennedy and Edwin Schlossberg and granddaughter of John F. Kennedy, has revealed her terminal cancer diagnosis in an essay published by The New Yorker on Saturday.
The 35-year-old has acute myeloid leukemia, with a rare mutation called Inversion 3.
Schlossberg said she was diagnosed on May 25, 2024, the same day she gave birth to her second child. Hours after delivery, her doctor noticed her abnormally high white-blood-cell count and moved her to another floor for further testing.
She initially dismissed the possibility of cancer and was stunned when the diagnosis was confirmed, saying she had considered herself "one of the healthiest people" she knew.
“This could not possibly be my life,” she wrote.
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a cancer that starts in the bone marrow and quickly moves into the blood, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS). General symptoms include weight loss, fatigue, fever, night sweats and loss of appetite.
There are several subtypes of AML that are important in determining a person's prognosis, according to the ACS. Schlossberg's subtype —an inversion of chromosome 3 — is listed as an unfavorable abnormality of AML on the ACS website.
Schlossberg spent five weeks at Columbia Presbyterian after her daughter’s birth before her blast-cell count dropped enough for her to begin chemotherapy at home. Her care later moved to Memorial Sloan Kettering, where she underwent a bone-marrow transplant and spent more than 50 days before returning home for more treatment.
In January, Schlossberg joined a clinical trial for CAR T-cell therapy. She wrote that much of the treatment unfolded from her hospital bed as her cousin, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., was nominated and confirmed as secretary of health and human services, a role she believes he was unqualified for.
Schlossberg thanked her husband and her family for their support and for countless days spent at her bedside.
“My parents and my brother and sister, too, have been raising my children and sitting in my various hospital rooms almost every day for the last year and a half,” she added.
Her brother, Jack Schlossberg, announced earlier this month that he is running for Congress. The 32-year-old is running for the New York City seat that has long been held by Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler, who in September announced he will not seek re-election.
Despite all of Tatiana Schlossberg’s treatments, she said, the cancer continued to return.
“During the latest clinical trial, my doctor told me that he could keep me alive for a year, maybe,” she wrote. “My first thought was that my kids, whose faces live permanently on the inside of my eyelids, wouldn’t remember me.”
Schlossberg is now trying her best to be in the present with her children.
By profession a writer, for several years Schlossberg was a reporter for the science section of The New York Times, where she covered climate change and the environment.
Schlossberg’s essay comes on the 62nd anniversary of her grandfather’s assassination, adding her diagnosis to a long history of tragedy within the Kennedy family.
John F. Kennedy’s son, John F. Kennedy Jr., and his wife, Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, died in a plane crash in 1999.
Ethel Kennedy, the widow of Robert F. Kennedy Sr., who was assassinated in 1968, died in October 2024 of complications from a stroke. She was 96.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
latest_posts
- 1
How to identify animal tracks, burrows and other signs of wildlife in your neighborhood - 2
What we know about Jonathan Ross, the ICE agent who shot and killed Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis - 3
This Week In Space podcast: Episode 188 — A New NASA Leader Rises? - 4
Clocks to go forward one hour in Europe as summer time starts - 5
Down to earth Manual for A Modest Hyundai Ioniq Electric for Seniors
Dick Van Dyke shares his secrets to longevity as he turns 100
Dark matter obeys gravity after all — could that rule out a 5th fundamental force in the universe?
The most effective method to Amplify Profits from Gold Speculation: Systems and Tips
Vote in favor of Your #1 4\u00d74 SUVs
How mountain terraces have helped Indigenous peoples live with climate uncertainty
Step by step instructions to Shield Your Wellbeing Around 5G Pinnacles\
Was it a stone tool or just a rock? An archaeologist explains how scientists can tell the difference
Flu concerns grow in US as UK sees more cases among kids
Hanwha Ocean secures orders worth $866m for five vessels













