Amaan Khan’s (‘27) sister, Zainab, was diagnosed with Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in 2017 at the age of 3. He described it as “extremely difficult” on his parents, leading them to have to take significant time away from their own lives to attend to her. “They would take turns staying with her in the hospital room, sleeping on a couch, which was cold and hard from what I can remember,” Amaan said.
In honor of his sister’s 5th anniversary of being cancer-free, Amaan ran in an annual fundraiser competition, which is a part of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Student Visionaries of the Year Program. This event brought high school students from across San Diego and Hawaii together to compete to raise the most amount of money for those affected by cancer. His team was known as “Team Khanfidence” and raised $110,000, almost half of his initial goal.
The situation was just as hard on Amaan as well, as he would have to live “with one parent at a time for years, and sometimes without either.” And visiting his sister in the hospital was never really an option due to the high risks throughout the year, like during flu season.
After years of rigorous treatment and chemotherapy, she was officially cancer-free, and she has been for the past 5 years, meaning she is no longer at risk of a relapse. This means that she is now just as likely to get cancer as the average person.
Zainab, now 11 years old and a student at Francis Parker, enjoys reading, listening to music, and hanging out with friends. Amaan described her as an extremely outgoing and kind person. He says that “she is always making the effort to become friends with those around her.”
LLS has made it a priority since 1949 to support cancer and has invested $1.8 billion into research since then, accelerating cancer research, patient support, and advocacy through their funds. “Their efforts are further increasing the odds of survival to prevent many deaths in the future and to serve justice to those who have passed away,” Amaan said.
Amaan says that his biggest goal with this fundraiser “has simply been to give back to the organization.” He explains that just 50 years ago, the chances of survival for this type of cancer were just 3%.” But because of the phenomenal work from LLS, “the odds have risen exponentially to over 85%, saving [his] sister’s life and many others.”
However, he clarifies that “there is still much work to be done,” and he hopes that he will be able to make a difference in the lives of others affected by cancer through his fundraising efforts.
Amaan’s initial goal for the fundraiser was $60,000, but “through good fortune and the efforts of [his] team,” [they] managed to raise over $110,000 by the deadline, which was Friday, March 14th!
“Beyond the fundraiser, I just hope to spread awareness about the disastrous effects of cancer and the good work organizations like LLS do to help find a cure,” Amaan explained. To learn more about Amaan’s story and his efforts, visit this link, and be sure to keep an eye out for any of his future projects!!