JFK’s granddaughter reveals rare, terminal diagnosis—then calls out RFK for gutting life-saving research
Industry Buzz
I would say acute myeloid leukemia with inversion 3 is one of the ones that most of us who manage leukemia look at as probably one of the most aggressive mutations.
—Clark Alsfeld, MD
I watched from my hospital bed as Bobby, in the face of logic and common sense, was confirmed for the position, despite never having worked in medicine, public health, or the government. Suddenly, the health-care system on which I relied felt strained, shaky.
—Tatiana Schlossberg
Tatiana Schlossberg, granddaughter of President John F. Kennedy and environmental journalist, has made a deeply personal disclosure: She is battling terminal acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
In an essay for The New Yorker titled “A Battle With My Blood,” the 35-year-old revealed that shortly after giving birth to her daughter in May 2024, doctors detected an alarmingly high white-blood-cell count—a finding that would lead to her diagnosis. [][]
From postpartum to diagnosis
Schlossberg’s journey began in the hours after delivery. In her essay, she describes how her physician noted a white blood cell count of 131,000 cells/µL, far above the normal 4,000–11,000 range. []
Initially, this was thought to possibly be pregnancy-related, but further testing revealed acute myeloid leukemia with a rare mutation called Inversion 3.
Inversion 3 is an uncommon mutation that, according to clinicians, tends to present a challenging prognosis. []
"I would say acute myeloid leukemia with Inversion 3 is one of the ones that most of us who manage leukemia look at as probably one of the most aggressive mutations," Clark Alsfeld, MD, an oncologist with Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center in New Orleans, told NPR. []
Despite being physically active—Schlossberg notes she swam a mile the day before giving birth—she was stunned by the diagnosis. []
Related: This 'energizing' supplement increases leukemia riskTreatment course
Once diagnosed, Schlossberg embarked on a rigorous treatment course. She spent 5 weeks at Columbia-Presbyterian, undergoing numerous rounds of chemotherapy, before transferring to Memorial Sloan Kettering, where she underwent a bone marrow transplant. []
Her first transplant used her sister’s stem cells. When the disease relapsed, she underwent a second transplant from an unknown donor. []
In early 2025, she enrolled in a CAR-T cell therapy clinical trial—an immunotherapy approach increasingly studied in hematologic malignancies. She later joined another trial after relapse. []
The physical toll has been severe: graft-versus-host disease, an Epstein–Barr virus infection that she says “blasted” her kidneys, significant muscle wasting, and a prolonged rehabilitation during which she had to relearn how to walk.[]
Her doctors told her frankly: Under the current trial regimen, she might survive about a year. []
Clinical and policy implications for physicians
Schlossberg is using her platform to critique the US's current health policy, specifically calling out her cousin, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
She argues that, during her, illness she has worried about the cuts to scientific research—including to NIH funding—and the instability in the research infrastructure that affects clinical trials, including those she’s relying on. [] "I watched from my hospital bed as Bobby, in the face of logic and common sense, was confirmed for the position, despite never having worked in medicine, public health, or the government," she wrote. "Suddenly, the health-care system on which I relied felt strained, shaky. Doctors and scientists at Columbia...didn’t know if they would be able to continue their research, or even have jobs." []
Schlossberg’s essay is a reminder that funding decisions, research investments, and regulatory policy directly affect patient outcomes. Her voice raises an important question: How do scientists, clinicians, and families advocate for sustainable support of life-saving research?
Related: Toddler dies after leukemia is misdiagnosed as a viral infection