UMD’s Will Francis announces relapse of leukemia
University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) men’s hockey senior Will Francis shared on Thursday that his leukemia has relapsed. The St. Paul native’s statement was posted by UMD Men’s Hockey on ‘X’ January 2nd:
Bulldog Country,
In late October after a routine check up and further testing, I unfortunately had a relapse of my leukemia. This was shocking given how I was progressing throughout the fall and I had no symptoms. The disease was very minimal and I am currently getting treatments now outside of Minnesota. I plan to be back with the team and on campus in February. Thank you for your continued support.
#WillPower
-Will Francis
In early October Francis shared his off-season journey battling cancer in 2024. Francis’ first cancer diagnosis came in March of 2020 and he finished chemo in June of 2022. Then, in August 2023 his cancer returned, and he underwent a bone marrow transplant in April 2024.
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