Vernon man had just moved when he was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia

Photo: GoFundMe

Friends and family are rallying around a Vernon man battling leukemia.

Cameron Lee was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia on Oct. 19.

He was admitted the following day to Vernon Jubilee Hospital and transferred just three days later to Vancouver General Hospital, where he began immediate treatment. 

Brother in law Andras Lee says on a GoFundMe page launched for Cameron that AML is an aggressive and quickly developing form of blood cancer.  

"Just like that, Cameron’s life has been flipped upside down," he says. "Cameron had just moved in September of this year from Vernon to Nakusp. He had been not feeling well and ended up in the emergency (ward) as he had a high fever and had fainted at home.

"After some tests and then a bone marrow biopsy, he was eventually diagnosed with AML."

Due to the COVID -19 pandemic, Lee has been unable to have any visitors since he was admitted to hospital.

He has two daughters, one in Vernon and the other attending university in Vancouver. The rest of his family lives in Manitoba.

Lee will have to relocate to Vancouver for six months to a year while he receives outpatient chemo treatments three to five times a week.

Andras launched the fundraiser to help cover the cost of living in Vancouver while he is unable to work, "so he can focus on this lengthy battle."

As of Thursday afternoon, the campaign had raised almost $6,000.