Meet Mackenzie Paul

We recently connected with Mackenzie Paul and have shared our conversation below.

Mackenzie, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

When I was diagnosed with cancer, I felt as though I had lost my entire identity. I was no longer a medical student. I couldn’t work out. I didn’t feel like a beautiful newlywed, and I was unable to enjoy the things I once loved with my friends and family. Instead, I was confined to a hospital bed, fighting for my life. I felt hopeless, as though I had nothing left to offer the world, because the roles and passions that once defined me had been stripped away.

It wasn’t until I surrendered everything to God that I realized there was still more to my story. Rather than being angry with Him, I began to look at my suffering and ask how it could be used for good. That shift in perspective is when I knew I needed to share my journey—and to help others through theirs.

I began posting daily videos under the hashtag #TakingBackWhatCancerTookFromMe, creating a community for those impacted by the weight of cancer. Every day, I shared pieces of my journey. Through this, I’ve connected with thousands of individuals experiencing similar struggles. Together, we lean on one another, pray for one another, and encourage each other to keep fighting.

I also turned to creativity as a way to tell my story—and to amplify others’. Through my portrait artwork, I founded The My Mantra Project, which gives fighters of all hardships a platform to share both their story and the daily mantra that helps them push through. I draw their portraits, write their mantra across the artwork, and create a video time-lapse of the process paired with a voiceover of their story. These portraits and videos are then shared on TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook—bringing hope, visibility, and solidarity to countless others.

In addition, I have written a book of poems inspired by my experience as a cancer patient. It is titled This Is What It Feels Like – A Book of Poems Written by a Cancer Patient. Since beginning treatment at MD Anderson in Houston this past February, I’ve been writing these poems and sharing them on TikTok. They have deeply resonated with fellow fighters and have also helped loved ones better understand what it’s like to battle cancer. The collection will be available to purchase on Amazon on September 15.

My purpose is to help others. It’s the only way I now how to face the hardship of cancer. There has to be some good that comes out of this, and this is my good.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

My Story –

My name is Mackenzie Paul — child of God, wife, dog mom, artist, writer, medical student, runner, daughter, sister, friend, and, last but certainly not least…cancer patient. Of all my identities, this is my least favorite. Unfortunately, it is also the one that has shaped my life the most. Cancer has taken so much from me, but I refuse to let it take my voice. So, here’s my story.
In the summer of 2023, I felt like I had the world in my hands. I had just married the love of my life at 23, moved into our first apartment together, and started my second year of medical school. Everything felt perfect — until the first day of that second year, when I passed out in a patient’s room.
It wasn’t a typical “trigger” moment — no blood, no vomiting, no invasive procedures — we were simply talking to a patient. Up to this point, I considered myself incredibly healthy. In high school, I earned 12 varsity letters in cross country, basketball, and soccer, and became a four-time cross country conference champion. In college, I played Division II basketball on scholarship. When I started medical school, I stayed active by running and lifting — especially with my wedding day ahead of me. As you can imagine, passing out like that didn’t sit right with me. So, I called my nurse practitioner back home.
When I opened my MyChart results, I expected to skim through them and see “all normal” — just like always. But not this time. Across my screen were the words: “critically low white blood cells, low red blood cells, low hemoglobin, low platelets, low neutrophils.” I stood up, started crying, and screamed, “I don’t want cancer, I don’t want cancer, I don’t want cancer.”
A few weeks later, after repeated labs showed no improvement, I had a bone marrow biopsy. My worst fear was confirmed on a random Thursday in the middle of August: I had acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
My world flipped upside down. I had to take a leave of absence from medical school, pack a suitcase, and move into a hospital room for what would be the next six weeks, fighting for my life. At first, I was certain everything would work out my way — that I wouldn’t have a high-risk mutation, wouldn’t need a stem cell transplant, and would end up in a “best-case scenario.” I was humbled when test results revealed the opposite: I did have a high-risk RUNX1 mutation, I would need a stem cell transplant, and the road ahead would be far harder than I had ever imagined.
For the first time in my life, everything was out of my control. Cancer doesn’t care how hard you work, how often you work out, how much you study, how good of a person you are, or how much money and success you’ve achieved. So I surrendered it all to God — the one true King who holds the world in His hands.
Before transplant, I went through two rounds of consolidation chemotherapy and had surgery to remove one ovary to preserve fertility. The transplant was brutal, but I believed it was the final step to getting my life back. After recovering, I ran a 5K, got a puppy, and started studying to return to medical school.
Six months after transplant, my phone rang with news that flipped my world upside down, again. My cancer was back.
The joy I had for the future instantly turned into fear. I was referred to MD Anderson, the best cancer hospital in the world, where I was told I’d need a second stem cell transplant. Before that could happen, I had to reach remission, which meant another month-long hospital stay. That month was the hardest month of my life. I developed severe pneumonia, couldn’t breathe on my own, was sent to the ICU, nearly died — and to make matters worse, the chemotherapy didn’t work at all. My cancer cells tripled.
By then, I was so weak I could barely walk to the bathroom or stand long enough to make food. I wanted nothing more than to sleep. I had lost my hope and was ready to go to heaven, where the suffering would end.
Then, in the middle of my lowest moment, I received a text from a mother I’d met through TikTok. Her daughter — who was my age, also in graduate school, also a proud dog mom — had passed away from AML. Grief washed over me. Grief for her, for her family, and for myself. We were both so young, so full of dreams, so loved — and cancer had taken it all away.
Right then, I decided to fight again. I needed to fight for the fallen, to fight for the current fighters, to fight for my family and friends, and to fight for me. I began taking back what cancer had taken from me. I started posting daily videos, building a community of cancer fighters online, writing poems, sharing my art, and connecting with others in the fight. It gave me hope. I began to dream again.
After the failed month-long hospital admission, I started clinical trials. The first one didn’t work; my cancer cells mutated and multiplied against the drug. That’s when we made the decision to leave Michigan and move to Houston for treatment at MD Anderson. It was hard to leave my roots, but I knew that was where God wanted me to be.
The first trial at MD Anderson lowered my cancer cells from 56% to 12%. We tried another trial in hopes of getting me to remission faster. Instead of reaching remission, I was hospitalized four times and my cancer cells went back up to 54%. Now, two years after my diagnosis, I have moved onto my next clinical trial. I continue to trust God’s plan, praying for remission and a second stem cell transplant. I am surrounded by love, support, and prayers from family, friends, my community, and even strangers.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Putting my faith in God, building relationships and connecting with others, and using my voice and my artwork to share my story and others’ stories.

All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?

Cancer. I am just trying my hardest to stay positive and make the most of my situation.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @kenziepaul3, @kenziepaul,portraits, @mymantra.project
• Facebook: Mackenzie Paul, Paul’s Portraits
• Other: tiktok – kenziepaul3