Help Kevin (A hero, A true Warrior) Beat Cancer

Here is the story of a remarkable man, a true warrior a hero. Kevin is a patient of mine, a police officer a public servant a loving father of two. He has cancer but that hasn’t deterred him from showing up to work and showing up for his family. During one of his regular treatments with me, I saw the little pouch attached to his chest that was delivering medicine to his body. That day he looked paler than usual and more tired, but his spirit as always was strong although his body was telling me a different story. During his cancer treatment, he must wear this pouch and he goes to work while the medicine is pumped into him rain or shine. I asked him why he wouldn’t take time off work since obviously his body really needs rest while he is beating his cancer, and his response touched my heart and soul. He said that he can’t take time off work because he still needs to feed, clothe, and house his family and that he is saving all his vacation time for the surgery that he is awaiting. Seeing him like that made me excuse myself from the treatment room he was in so that I could go into my office and cry without him seeing my tears. For several days after this treatment, I kept thinking of what I could do for him.

I had to do something and decided to approach him with the idea of a GoFundMe campaign.

Kevin is such an incredibly brave man, a true warrior that I wasn’t sure if he would be open to this idea; it took a little convincing. It had never occurred to him to ask for help; he was doing the best he could, using his dwindling savings to pay for some of the treatments that his insurance didn’t cover.

I also reached out to his two amazing sisters Mindi and Lori who are his incredible support partners so that we can create this GoFundMe for him.

I have been in private practice for over 24 years, and I have never done a GoFundMe for any of my patients, or anyone for that matter; so you see, this is a very special case and a very special person who needs our help. Please help with what you feel is in your heart and share it with everyone you know. Even a small amount becomes a whole lot of love when it is done out of the kindness of our collective love to help a hero.

Here is Kevin's story in his own words.

Hi. My name is Kevin Blumberg. Welcome to my story. I’m currently 51 years old and have been living with Crohn’s disease since my diagnosis in 1992 at the age of 21. I never had a symptom until the fateful day that I had some abdominal pain and proceeded to black out, ended up in the hospital with a perforated bowel and toxic waste leaking into my abdominal cavity which caused potentially life-threatening sepsis. Thankfully, the surgeons at Northwest Hospital were able to remove the damaged portion of my colon and a few days later, sent me on my way. I continued to live a healthy life but 9 years later had a relapse which required a second surgery; I developed a leaking fistula which took 6 months of treatment and subsequent surgery to remove additional damaged bowel.

Fast forward 7 years and my Crohn’s flared up again. I met my Gastroenterologist Dr. Heller who did a colonoscopy and started me on bimonthly infusions of Remicade which has been a game changer. After a year, I finally began to feel “normal”, and Crohn’s no longer controlled my life. I’ve been living a healthy lifestyle ever since. I work out, I love weight training, and I eat a very clean diet.

On March 7th, 2023 I had my routine colonoscopy with Dr. Heller, which I have every 3 years due to my Crohn’s disease. I awoke from anesthesia and Dr. Heller said the words that I will never forget. “Well, we found a tumor and it’s cancerous.” It was like a punch to the gut and the most terrifying thing that anyone has ever said to me.

I’m a police officer and a volunteer fire fighter and have experienced some scary things, but all that pales in comparison to being told that you have cancer. How can this be? I take great care of myself. I don’t have any symptoms. I have 2 kids that need me. I’m not done living. I have felt every emotion possible amplified by a million.

I have been a public servant for the better part of my adult career and have had the honor to utilize my training to save the lives of multiple people throughout. This has led to my receiving life-saving awards, unit citation awards, and several other professional accolades. I truly consider it a privilege to have helped people in states of both physical and mental crisis and hope to continue to do so moving forward.

It’s so strange to go from being the helper to being the one who now needs help. I have undergone biweekly chemotherapy treatments since July 3rd and the side effects of chemo have intensified with each round. However, I continue to suit up in my police uniform and equipment, go to work, and do my best to push through feeling lousy. Due to the cumulative effects of chemo, somewhere down the road I will not be able to get back to work and will have to honor my body’s need for rest and recuperation. I have paid leave from work but not enough to cover my post-chemo time off and my eventual post-surgical time off.

In addition to chemo, I am undergoing mistletoe treatment which is meant to decrease the negative effects of chemotherapy and to assist in obliterating the cancer cells. However, this supplemental treatment is not covered by insurance and is very costly. This cost combined with my eventual time off work without pay is why I’m sharing my story.

This experience has been humbling to say the least, and I find it very difficult to ask for help. I only wish I didn’t need to ask but I do. Any money donated will be used to support my family and myself as I continue to fight the toughest battle of my life. I am a warrior and know in the deepest depths of my soul that I WILL beat this cancer.