MOORHEAD, Minn. -- To her family, friends and teammates, Ashley Robben is kind-hearted. She is caring, but remains a fierce competitor in distance races for MSU Moorhead cross country and track & field. 

Her competitive spirit has no doubt proven fruitful for the Staples, Minn., native. Robben was a state champion for Staples-Motley High School, helping her team to the state title in 2021. Her efforts guided her to Moorhead where she competed in three cross country races in the fall of 2023. This included new personal-bests in the 4k (17:46.5) at the Dragon Twilight and 6k (27:16.3) at the Jimmie Invitational. 

However, shortly after that meet in Jamestown, Robben was met with a whole new competition. Robben was feeling fatigued more frequently during distance practices, which was highly unusual for the freshman, who had been running distance for years. Initially, medical professionals figured Robben was suffering from sports-induced asthma, which is relatively common for athletes. 

"I was having trouble breathing when I was running during the summer. In August, I started our practices at MSUM and I was struggling in my practices because I couldn't breathe. I spoke with the athletic trainer and she said a lot of athletes get sports-induced asthma. She had me get blood work done and an EKG. My blood work was a little off and they thought my iron was a little low, so I started taking some liquid iron. I took that but didn't feel much of a difference. They had me do an ultra sound the next week and everything came back good. I continued practicing but it was a struggle with breathing and having energy and being tired. My mom had me get tested for asthma and they found out I did have asthma," Robben said. "As the days went on I was more tired and then my last meet I ran I got the worst headache. I continued having headaches off and on the next week and was very tired. My teammates kept telling me to take a day off because I was so tired. I went home that weekend to my parents and they could see I was exhausted. I went to practice on Monday and after we were done my friend Kate knew I wasn't feeling the best and she made me go talk to coach Milner. He suggested I go in and get checked out for maybe a sinus infection. I went into the walk-in clinic the next day around 10:30 a.m."

So, on the morning of Tuesday, October 17, Ashley Robben entered a walk-in clinic by herself in hopes of an answer. The result was something unexpected and would alter Robben's life. "The doctor checked me out for sinus infection and said I didn't have that, but she asked me questions and I told her how I had been feeling. As she checked me out she found I had swollen lymph nodes so then she had me do more blood work. The results came back and my white blood cell count was 250,000 which was not good, they should be between 5,000-11,000. The doctor had me call my mom so she could talk to both of us at the same time," Robben said of the moment. "She told us what they found with the tests and that it was Leukemia but did not know at that time if it was Adult acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) or Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). She did one more test to clarify which one it would be. After being there for five hours the doctor told her she would call with the last test results."



Robben left the doctor's office to relay the news to head cross country coach Ryan Milner and her teammates. It was at this time that Robben received the call from her doctor, which stated she would need to return immediately. "We found out that it was AML which is a fast-moving blood cancer so we had to move on it right away. My doctors told me I had to pack up some things and get to the hospital. The day I found out I had Leukemia, I had to check myself into the hospital so they could get things started immediately. I was on fluids that night and the next morning I had a PICC line put in, a bone marrow check and had my first chemo treatment that night, less than 24 hours after I was told. It was a whirlwind with so much happening. The next Wednesday we found out I also had it in my spine and bone marrow so they did chemo for both of those also."

Acute Myeloid Leukemia is a fast-acting cancer which starts in the bone marrow (the soft inner part of certain bones, where new blood cells are made), but most often it quickly moves into the blood, as well. Currently, AML is extremely rare as it impacts less than 200,000 people in the United States yearly. It can sometimes spread to other parts of the body including the lymph nodes, liver, spleen and the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord). Because of how quickly it can move and spread throughout the body, immediate treatment is necessary to combat the disease. Robben received around the clock treatments and has not left the hospital since entering on October 17. 

"I have chemo for the white cells to bring them to zero. I had cancer in my spine, so I had spinal taps where they take a sample and put chemo in at the same time on Wednesdays. My first one came back with a lot, the second one came back with a small amount and the third one came back negative, so that was extremely exciting," Robben said of the constant treatment she has been receiving since entering the hospital. "They did do two more tests to make sure it was still negative, and they were. Bone marrow chemo is a 21-day chemo and they do the check a week later."

For Robben, the challenge was all-encompassing. First, it was grappling with the reality of the situation while also utilizing her competitive spirit to remain positive and committed to healing. However, there is a lot of waiting and patience required throughout the process as things do not happen overnight. Robben also got COVID-19 while in the hospital, which has made the challenge even more daunting. "There is a lot of waiting for things to happen over a two to three-week period. This can be hard because if my white cell count does not come up as fast as we hope, that can prevent things from happening. After my first chemo round, my white count did not come up fast enough so then it was time for the bone marrow check and I was able to get shots that helped everything come up," she said. "Then I got COVID so then I was not able to get my break to go home for Thanksgiving, which was a bummer. We then received the results from the bone marrow check and they wanted to get the second round going right away to prevent the cancer from trying to grow again."



Despite the the diagnosis and the challenges Robben has fallen back on what she knows best: family. Robben's mother, Kathy, has been by Ashley's side throughout the entire process, even staying in the hospital with Robben around the clock. She credits her mother's presence and attitude as a massive key to her own mindset in a hard situation. "My mom has been my biggest supporter because she has been able to stay with me and help me on those days that I am not feeling the best. It would be easy to do nothing so having her here has been great," Robben said, who states that other family continues to come and support her as the weeks pass. "My mom has been the one to keep me going because if I do not do what I should be, things will move a lot slower in the healing process. Also, my boyfriend Corey drives up every weekend to visit me and be there with me and the same with my dad too."

MSUM cross country and track & field has also been alongside Robben in her journey. Although Ashley was on campus for only a few months before her diagnosis, she was able to foster incredible friendships and relationships with her teammates in that time. "They have all been very nice and caring and rooting me on. They feel like a family and want to be here to support me along my journey and keep me going," Robben said of her teammates, some of which have come to visit her in the hospital on multiple occasions. 

In conjunction with MSUM's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), Dragon cross country and track & field helped organize a 'Be The Match' event on campus. Those who have been diagnosed with AML need a bone marrow transplant to help brunt the impacts of the disease while also hopefully entering remission eventually. The event was held on November 29 in the Comstock Memorial Union as 148 people choose to donate for bone marrow research. Participants simply needed to swab the inside of their mouth for 30 seconds. Those samples will now be entered in the bone marrow registry and could potentially save someone's life. "I think that it was exciting to know that the college I am going to was so supportive, enough to hold a particularly important event that a lot of people do not really think about," Robben said. "To have 148 people willing to be a donor is a great feeling."

That is not the only initiative MSUM student-athletes have taken to help Ashley and those impacted by AML. The cross country/track & field program as well as SAAC are hoping to bring awareness to Ashley's story at the Dragon basketball game on December 2 against the University of Mary. They will be taking donations, all of which will be directly given to Ashley's GoFundMe, which is helping cover her medical costs. MSUM student-athletes also commissioned shirts on their own accord which read 'Pray For Ashley'. 

"Words cannot express how thankful my family has been for all the support we are getting. It makes our hearts so happy to know that we have so much support from the MSUM community," said Robben's mother, Kathy Robben. "It makes me feel great knowing that the MSUM community has helped and supported me," Ashley added. 

The initial 'Be The Match' event on campus was intended to help try and find Robben a bone marrow match. While familial matches are the first tested in such situations, medical insurance often only covers one family member's testing. The 'Be The Match' offers a wider chance of a match, but in Robben's case, she learned of some exciting news ahead of MSUM's event. Her brother, Dillan, was a perfect match while her brother Tanner was a 50 percent match. This means Ashley is in position to receive a bone marrow transplant which will allow her to heal following chemotherapy. "My family and friends were extremely excited to hear that Dillan was a perfect match and one other brother, Tanner, is also a half match, which is uncommon. It is usually a one out of four chance," said Kathy Robben.


Despite the massive news of Robben finding a bone marrow match in her brother, Dillan, she will still need to complete chemotherapy. Robben's doctors want to get her cancer dwindled enough before they move forward with the bone marrow transplant. "I started my second round of chemo on November 30 which will be four to six weeks. My bone marrow still has 11 percent cancer in it after the first round. Depending on how this round goes and how the numbers look we might have to do a third round, or the bone marrow transplant will happen," Robben said of next steps in her treatment process. "Once the bone marrow transplant happens, I will be in the hospital for four to five weeks to make sure my body accepts it and then I need to stay in the area for another two months to make sure everything nothing comes up while I recover."

The road ahead for Robben is certainly not an easy one, but she feels that with the support of her family, friends and teammates, she can remain steadfast in her race towards remission. "Continue to pray for me and my family. Pray that I will stay strong and do all the things I need to do to keep the strength and energy to get through this process," Robben said when asked how people can continue to support her throughout the treatment journey. 

While she is competing and battling in a different sense now, Ashley Robben still has the resolve and fight that her family, friends and teammates know her for. She has remained committed to beating AML and has showcased an amazing attitude in the process. But if you know Ashley Robben, you know that is just who she is. 

However, she still has a final message for her teammates, who will embark on the track & field season next weekend. 

"Thank you for thinking about me and supporting me! Good luck this season and I hope I can make it to at least one meet to cheer you on!"

Donate to Ashley's GoFundMe at the link here.