What you are about to see here isn’t just a cute video of a 21-year-old, but a story of strength, resilience, and finding happiness when life gives you another chance. Alayna Riozzi-Bodine’s life came crashing down at the age of 17 when she was diagnosed with cancer for the first time. She was starting her senior year of high school in September 2021 when she was told that she had stage 2 Hodgkin lymphoma.
“No 17-year-old ever expects to hear the words ‘you have cancer.’ Two thoughts ran through my mind: ‘Am I going to survive?’ and ‘Am I going to lose my hair?'” Alayna Riozzi-Bodine recalls the time when she first learned about her diagnosis. The then-teenager retained her hair while undergoing eight rounds of chemotherapy, and she was declared cancer-free in February 2022. Little did she know that her life would once again take a challenging turn!
@alayna_bodine 1 year scans post treatment today! #cancersurvivor #hogkinslymphoma #cancersucks #cancerfighter #chemocurls
In 2023, during her sophomore year of college, she relapsed and was diagnosed with cancer a second time. And this time, things were more challenging than before. According to a report by People, the cancer wasn’t responding to chemotherapy. The doctors informed that she needed to undergo a bone marrow transplant.
And this time, she started to lose her hair as well. During her treatment after the initial diagnosis, she was able to use a cold cap, which is a form of scalp cooling treatment. These caps, connected to an automated device, can help reduce hairfall to some extent as a patient undergoes chemotherapy. The second time, she went through immunotherapy along with two rounds of a different chemotherapy. She couldn’t use the cold caps and eventually lost her hair.
She said, “During my first diagnosis, using the cold cap allowed me to look in the mirror and still see me. It gave me a sense of normalcy and control when everything else in my life felt so out of control.”
“The second time, when I relapsed and couldn’t use the cold cap, it was a completely different experience. The night before Christmas Eve, I shaved my head, and I remember feeling like cancer was consuming me and winning,” she further told People.
With the hair loss, Alayna Riozzi-Bodine felt that she lost her identity. She recalled that she couldn’t recognize herself whenever she looked in the mirror. The cancer survivor defined it as “heartbreaking” and noted “how much preserving your hair can mean to a patient — not out of vanity, but as a way of holding on to a piece of yourself through something so devastating.”
@alayna_bodine Just do it!💜🎗️ #chemocurls #cancer #survivor #x2 #curls #hodgkinslymphoma #pediatriccancer
After the bone marrow transplant in April 2024, she was finally declared cancer-free in July 2025. Alayna, who has gotten another chance at life after a tough battle with cancer, is now documenting the regrowth of her hair along with other moments of recovery.
In a video shared on TikTok, she was seen rejoicing as she was able to put her hair in a ponytail for the first time in years. Flaunting her baby ponytail, she called it “so tiny and so cute.”
“It looks like a little freaking pompom or, I don’t even know, like a little bunny’s tail,” the cancer survivor said with happiness. She also added that people might not understand how happy this small ponytail makes her feel.
@alayna_bodine First pony tail since chemo and being bald af!!!! I’m so happy #cancersurvivor #hogkinslymphoma #hairtok #chemocurls #hairstyle #cancerfree
“It wasn’t just about the hair — it was about what it symbolized. That ponytail showed me that time is passing, healing is happening, and I’m growing — not just in the hair on my head, but as a person, as a two-time cancer survivor,” she said.
Alayna also told that she immediately called her mom to show her the ponytail. Even her father came upstairs to celebrate the moment with her and take pictures of her.
She said that she grew up with long hair and therefore, it was always a part of her identity. As she is enjoying every moment of her hair growing back, she said, “I think my hair tells a story of resilience, and I’m excited to see where it goes — whether it stays short and curly or eventually grows long again.”
