Bob White - “A Hat He Still Has”

Bob White, Colerain, NC

At age 14, Bob White found a lump in his neck that coincided with a sore throat. After a visit to his family doctor, White went to UNC, where doctors diagnosed him with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.

White lives in Colerain, NC, and is now healthy at age 38. Yet the memories of childhood cancer are clear and he said that having cancer at a young age "numbs you just a little bit." White was attending a private school in Merry Hill, NC, when he was diagnosed and soon began weekly treatments for 8 months. He distinctly remembers the smell of the IV and vomiting all way home, since at the time, anti-nausea medicine was not as effective as it is today. He remembers the first time the school coach came to visit him at home. He had lost his hair and the coach gave him a hat to wear - a hat he still has today.

White now has few problems resulting from cancer. He comes to the UNC Pediatric Survivor Clinic annually. There is a hospital close to his home, but White continues to come to UNC. "I've always been comfortable with the care at UNC," he said. White met a lady, Suzy, during his first visit to UNC. Suzy's son was in the hospital when White found out he had cancer. Suzy spoke to her friend Joan, who offered to let White and his family stay in her home. He has stayed in touch with Suzy and Joan and will forever have fond memories of them.

White is careful in the sun and in what he does and eats. "Life is a lot busier now," White said, "but I just try to do the best that I can." He married his wife, Catherine, in 1994 and has worked at Avoca Inc. in Merry Hill for 14 years, a company that takes extractions from plants.

"Cancer caused me to mature faster," he said. "I took things too seriously when I was younger. Now I see things differently and know what's really important in life." White wants to encourage those with cancer by sharing his story and showing how things turned out for him. "I'm happy now," he said.