Resident Celebrating 16 Years Since Beating Cancer

It was 16 years ago Ben Blaisdell was about to compete in a sailing race during Marblehead's sailing week on the hottest day of the summer when all of a sudden he started freezing. 

The then-teen soon found himself wrapped in blankets in the instructor's room rather than on the boat he was ready to race. Believing he had the flu, Blaisdell let the episode go until weeks later it happened again.

"My mom knew something was wrong," Blaisdell said. "We went to the doctors."

After countless tests, no diagnosis was made until one of the doctors went to shake Blaisdell's hand.

"He twisted my hand as if to see the top of it," Blaisdell recounted. "And I was yellow."

Doctors soon found Blaisdell had very few red blood cells -- an indicator of childhood leukemia.

"I was about to go to Maine to go sailing," Blaisdell said. "But the doctor said the next few years of my life would likely be on hold. That's when I realized."

Now the father of two, Blaisdell, of Abbot Street, has a clean bill of health and is currently working to educate locals about the 15-40 Connection named after the alarming statistic in the country.

Today,  nearly 70,000 15- to 40-year-olds in the United States are diagnosed with cancer every year. While the statistic is alarming, cancer survival rates for this age group have been nearly stagnant since 1975.

 The 15-40 Connection works to educate adolescents and young adults to take their medical care and cancer screenings seriously.

"I'm so thankful for Dana Farber," Blaisdell said, noting he regularly walks in the Jimmy Fund Walk and talks to groups about the signs of cancer.

After Blaisdell's diagnosis, he underwent extensive radiation and chemotherapy. The treatment left him sick and he said he hardly remembers most of the experience. While the cancer went into remission quickly, the effects of the therapy lasted much longer. A sophomore at St. John's Prep at the time, Blaisdell missed out on a year of school.

"I can't say enough about Dana Farber," Blaisdell said, adding because of their treatment, he was able to go on to Connecticut College. "That's why I do as much as I can now. I even walked in the Jimmy Fund Walk the day after my wedding. We all wore our wedding clothes and walked."

Besides helping to spread the word about the 15-40 Connection, Blaisdell works in investment and risk oversight at U.S. Trust Bank. He spends as much time with his wife, a 2-and-a-half-year-old and four-month-old.

"It's pretty amazing my health is where it is today," Blaisdell said. "I can still sail and spend as much time with my wife and kids."