During Blood Cancer Awareness Month, HealthTree Foundation is sharing the real stories of real people with blood cancer. Today, we are sharing the story of Sharon Hefetz, a mother of three and mindset and health coach and trained Master NLP practitioner. She was diagnosed with ultra-high-risk multiple myeloma.
Sharon Hefetz is a mother of three and a mindset and health coach, and trained Master NLP practitioner. When she was diagnosed with ultra high-risk multiple myeloma, her entire world shifted. For Sharon, navigating cancer required far more than medical intervention alone—it called for a holistic approach to healing that honored her mind, body, and spirit.
“My work has shifted since my diagnosis. It’s always been centered around helping people strengthen their mental and emotional resilience. When I was diagnosed, it felt like the universe was giving me a final exam of like, okay, put your money where your mouth is. And now it’s time to take everything I know, everything I believe, and all the information I gathered throughout the years and just kind of put it to a test,” Sharon said.
Navigating treatment choices
Facing ultra-high-risk myeloma, Sharon worked closely with her oncologists to make intentional, personalized treatment decisions. She was first treated with quadruplet therapy and maintenance therapy. This controlled her myeloma for some time, but when the cancer returned, it shook Sharon almost more than her initial diagnosis.
“I was very intentional in my lifestyle. My mindset, my nutrition, my inner work, my everything,” Sharon said. “I had that sense of control. It broke something open when [the myeloma] came back again. It kind of shook everything that I believed in.”
Finding healing and the art of “surrender”
During her first experience with myeloma, Sharon had leaned into self-love and setting boundaries for herself. For so long, Sharon’s life had been about caring for others, and her experience with myeloma helped her truly focus on herself. When she experienced relapse, her friend helped her reframe what was happening to her.
Sharon had felt like she could control her outcomes. She was always a problem-solver. Why wouldn’t she approach cancer the same way? Instead, her friend invited her to “surrender.”
At first, her friend’s statement made her upset. “It was very, very hard for me to understand the meaning of surrendering to the process and surrendering to the outcome,” Sharon said.
But she realized that her friend didn’t mean giving up. She meant letting go of the idea that Sharon was somehow responsible for the outcome of her treatment. “I needed to understand that I can only take an active part in the journey,” Sharon said. “I can only control doing my best. Just be at peace. Be here. Be present now and not think of the outcome.”
Rather than treating healing as an internal war or trying to control every outcome, Sharon instead focused on cultivating peace and calm. “It was the first time I gave myself peace within that journey. I felt more energy for the healing process, and I wasn’t wasting the energy arguing with myself. I could breathe again,” she said.
CAR-T and a new chapter
After the myeloma returned, Sharon and her care team decided on CAR T-cell therapy. It was much easier to choose a treatment option the second time. “Every time they talk about myeloma, they say, ‘this is a marathon.’ This is a long run for life,” she said. “When I was looking at the long run, CAR-T gave a few options.”
This September is a year since Sharon received CAR-T therapy. “My body’s been recuperating and getting back to itself. It gave me another chance at life. ”
For other people who are getting ready for CAR-T treatment, Sharon shared a few recommendations.
Go in with a full heart and stay optimistic.
Reframe your hospital stay as an opportunity to take care of yourself. Bring personal items, such as socks, blankets, and snacks.
Entertain your mind. Bring things to keep your mind busy, calm, and distracted, like books and activities.
Know what to expect. Sharon experienced a few days of side effects, like cytokine release syndrome (CRS), but being prepared helped her through it.
Sharon’s epiphany using HealthTree
Since the beginning of her diagnosis, Sharon has been active in HealthTree programs. She participates in the Coach program, uses HealthTree News and Videos to find the latest information, and participates in HealthTree research.
“An epiphany that I had while using HealthTree: we’re in this together. Even though every single person here is going through it alone and every person has their own story,” Sharon said. “We could feel like we belong to something together, and HealthTree allows that. It allows us to be part of something greater, and that something greater is finding the cure.”
A central passion for Sharon is encouraging fellow patients to actively participate in the collective search for a cure. She views creating a personal health record with HealthTree as vital to strengthening the entire myeloma community.
When you create your personal health record with HealthTree by connecting electronic health records and participating in community surveys—even quick 3-minute ones—you provide critical data that aids researchers in advancing treatments and moving closer to a cure.
“Unfortunately, we are a big community. And we’re also fortunate that we’re a big community, because if everyone does connect their labs and their information and make it available for the researchers to help us get closer to a cure and closer to better treatments, I feel like it’s a gamechanger,” Sharon said. “Not everyone is as lucky as we are.”
Create your Personal Health Record with HealthTree.
View your labs, vitals, treatment history, genetics, imaging, and more—all in one place.
