Nancy Veatch isn’t living the life she expected when she first heard the words, “You have cancer.”
Veatch, a City of Hope Cancer Fighters Ambassador, has become a familiar and steadying voice for other blood cancer patients across the country. She is now a part of the same support system that carried her through the early days of diagnosis and treatment.
September is Leukemia and Lymphoma Awareness Month, making her story especially timely. It also marks a new chapter in blood cancer treatment, one being written closer to home for Valley families thanks to the care she received at City of Hope Phoenix, part of one of the nation’s largest and most advanced cancer research and treatment organizations.
A Diagnosis That Didn't Slow Her Down
In August 2022, Veatch was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and soon learned that her diagnosis also included the added complexity of chronic lymphocytic leukemia and small lymphocytic lymphoma.
She'd already researched where she wanted to be treated before her diagnosis was confirmed. The day she found out, she called City of Hope Cancer Center Phoenix. "They told me, 'Don't you want to wait a day? You just got diagnosed,'" Veatch remembers. "I said, 'No, I don't have time to waste.'"
Within a week, she had a full care team in place, and soon after, she began a six-month immunotherapy treatment — grateful for a modern option that let her avoid traditional chemotherapy altogether.
Bringing the Fight Closer to Home
At City of Hope Cancer Center Phoenix, Dr. Tibor Kovacsovics, chief of hematology, has spent more than three decades treating leukemia, lymphoma, and myeloma. Over the years, he's watched the field transform.
"It's a field that has dramatically changed over the past 30 years, thanks to clinical research and, even, basic research," Dr. Kovacsovics says. "The prognosis and the outcome have significantly improved across probably all diagnoses."
Unlike solid tumors, he explains, blood cancers require a specialized toolkit that includes targeted drugs, immunotherapy and other cellular therapies, and, when needed, bone marrow or stem cell transplantation. City of Hope has performed more than 20,000 such transplants nationwide since 1976, a legacy of experience the Phoenix campus now draws on directly.
No More Driving Across the Valley
Ask any caregiver who has driven a loved one hours away for treatment, and they'll tell you that distance matters. Long drives take a toll on families, disrupt work and school schedules, and add stress to a situation that can seem overwhelming.
That's the gap Dr. Kovacsovics and his team are working to close for Arizona families.
His message to Scottsdale families facing a blood cancer diagnosis is clear: "We want patients to know they don't have to drive across the Valley for world-class care. They can receive modern treatment, access clinical trials, and get transplant services right here."
Building a Life Around Wellness
For Veatch, healing means more than medicine. She leaned into nutrition, hydration, movement, sleep, and time outdoors.
She thinks of her life in chapters: childhood and college, then parenthood, and career. “I sort of see this part of my life as my third act," she says. “I feel like I've been given a chance because I'm still here. And, so my motto is ‘here for it.’”
Hope, Close to Home
Ask Nancy Veatch what she'd tell a family just starting this journey. "I hope that you reach out to those around you, and find hope," she says. "Because at the end of the day, it's the thing that carries us through."
To learn more, visit cityofhope.org/phoenix