Life, Interrupted

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  • Facing Cancer in Your 20s
  • A Family Gets Cancer
  • Love in the Time of Cancer
  • The Social Network
  • A Guarded Optimism
  • Going Public With Cancer
  • Facing Cancer in Your 20s

    “Cancer doesn’t just put your life on hold,” said Ms. Jaouad, who was diagnosed with leukemia a year after she graduated from college. “It’s not like you get to skip back a few months and pick up exactly where you left off. I wasn’t going to get my old life back.”

    Video by Shayla Harris/The New York Times

    A Family Gets Cancer

    A year ago, Ms. Jaouad was told that a bone marrow transplant was her only shot at a cure for her leukemia. Her illness and her brother's role as her bone marrow donor has taken an emotional toll on the close-knit family.

    Video by Shayla Harris/The New York Times

    Love in the Time of Cancer

    “Illness does weasel its way into every aspect of your life and every relationship no matter how good it is,” said Ms. Jaouad, whose battle with cancer has tested and strengthened her relationship with her boyfriend.

    Video by Shayla Harris/The New York Times

    The Social Network

    While undergoing chemotherapy and a recent bone marrow transplant for leukemia, Ms. Jaouad has relied on a small circle of friends for support as she begins her slow recovery.

    Video by Shayla Harris/The New York Times

    A Guarded Optimism

    100 days after her bone marrow transplant, 24-year-old Suleika Jaouad celebrates a big milestone in her fight against leukemia.

    Video by Almudena Toral/The New York Times

    Going Public With Cancer

    “Cancer is not something that makes you want to share. It's something that makes you want to hide,” said Suleika Jaouad. Ms. Jaouad offers a glimpse of her new life as an advocate for young adults with cancer as well as the friendships she has made as a result of going public with her illness.

    Video by Shayla Harris/The New York Times

    Produced by SULEIKA JAOUAD and SHAYLA HARRIS/The New York Times