Visit lls.org to Make a tax-deductible donation and help fund life-saving research, or pay tribute and donate in honor or memory of a loved one. Visit their volunteer page to learn about Leukemia and Lymphoma Society events, or learn how to sponsor a LLS fundraising team.
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n the early twentieth century, a blood cancer diagnosis was almost always synonymous with a death sentence. Rudolph and Antionette de Villers experienced this grief firsthand when they lost their teenage son, Robert, to blood cancer in 1944. Five years later, the couple started a fundraising and educational organization in their son’s name, which quickly became known as the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS). In the six decades since its foundation, the LLS has made great strides in the field of blood cancer research, starting with the development of the first chemotherapy drugs in the 1950s to the first bone marrow transplant in the 1970s to the deep understanding of genetic and molecular abnormalities that cause blood cancer in the 1990s and beyond. Today, one of the main focuses of the LLS is increasing public awareness of the disease, as well as developing a globe-spanning network of patients, survivors, doctors, and volunteers, who—along with outside donations—have raised a total of $76 million towards research funding.
“It’s important to find a cure, but it’s just as important to make sure that patients live longer, more comfortable lives.” christine clayton, visual media arts 2015
Leukemia and Lymphoma Society