VCOM View Magazine Vol. 13 | No. 1

Student Spotlight Cancer Diagnosis Reaffirms Casey Harvey’s Commitment to Medicine A nyone who has been to medical school knows how challenging it can be, both intellectually and physically. So, when Casey Harvey reached the beginning of Block 4 of her first year at VCOM-Virginia—in April 2023—and started feeling a little run down, it was easy to brush the symptoms by Amy Ostroth

The official diagnosis was acute myeloid leukemia, and her oncologist told her that she would not be able to return to school because her treatment needed to begin right away. “That is when the seriousness of the situation really hit,” she remembers. The experience of being a patient with a life threatening illness can be particularly difficult for a young adult like Casey. She completed her civil engineering degree at Virginia Tech in 2017 and worked in the field for several years before coming to VCOM. Her cancer diagnosis meant moving back home and relying on her parents. “It can feel like taking a step backwards in life,” she says. “But my family was hugely supportive, and we tried to find a happy middle ground between support and independence.” Her VCOM classmates were also supportive, sending so many letters that it took until the end of

off as being related to the stress of her academic program. But the symptoms got progressively worse and by the middle of Block 4, she realized she needed to do something. Curious about what was happening, Casey got some lab work done. However, she needed help interpreting the results, so she sent them to her father, an emergency medicine DO. Her father had to deliver the devastating news: Casey had leukemia. Casey headed to UVA Health Charlottesville, about two and half hours from Blacksburg.

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