WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon

In December 2011, Linda noticed that she was more tired than usual and had a rash on her leg. She had excessive bruising in places and was exhausted from playing soccer. She then went to the doctors and learned her rash that she had for 2 weeks was known as Petechial rash. She underwent blood work and other tests and it was determined she had Philadelphia chromosome positive ALL, a rare subtype of ALL. In patients with Philadelphia chromosome positive ALL, the bone marrow produces too many white blood cells, which become cancerous. Her treatment has included a stem cell transplant and radiation. In total her treatment lasted about 2 years. Linda says she has a great relationship with Dr. Hong. She feels very comfortable around him and says he is an amazing doctor that cares for his patients’ wellbeing. Linda moved to Wisconsin for a year and saw new doctors and nurses, however it was not the same because she didn't feel comfortable around them – she wanted her doctors that were with her from Day 1: that was and still is Dr. Hong. Linda would like to thank Dr. Hong for being part of the team that saved her life and allowed her to continue living. She says she will forever be grateful and indebted to them no matter what. Linda has 4 siblings, 3 sisters and 1 brother. Her youngest sister Emily, who was only 7 years old at the time, happily donated her stem cells to Linda as she was a match. She enjoys playing volleyball and tennis and hiking in her free time. Linda is currently in college right now attending Massasoit Community College in Brockton studying to become a nurse. She hopes to someday work alongside the team that helped saved her life. She is working as a Clinical Nursing Assistant at Boston Children's Hospital on the HEM/ONC floor.

Dr. Hong did his residency training in pediatrics at Boston Children's back in 2008-2011 and then his fellowship training from 2011-2014. He selected pediatrics because he wants kids to be able to be kids and not have the worries of being ill. Being able to help kids get better was been his inspiration for going into medical school.  And as a pediatric oncologist, his goals now are to be able to watch his patients grow up to pursue their own passions. Linda came to Boston Children's during the holiday season in 2011. She had a specific type of leukemia which was not treatable 2 to 3 decades ago. This leukemia is called Philadelphia chromosone positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Because of hard work of researchers across the world,  including at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, medications have been developed to target this type of cancer to help cause the cancer cells to die in combination with chemotherapy. Since Linda's sister was a perfect match, they were able to give Linda a bone marrow transplant. Dr. Hong says Linda has been a fantastic patient and that “watching her grow up has been very humbling. I’m especially grateful to all the incredible work of the clinicians and researchersbefore me.” He says all their efforts have given her a chance to pursue her passion in becoming a nurse and they have been grateful that she has been performing some of her training at Boston Children's / Dana-Farber.

Tina was diagnosed in October 2016 with an aggressive form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma after being quite ill and visiting several doctors.  At the time she was diagnosed, the cancer was estimated to be between stage 3 and 4. She had heard from others about the exceptional care at Dana-Farber. She immediately knew that she was in the best hands possible when she met Dr. Ann LaCasce because she made Tina feel extremely comfortable as she assessed the situation. Tina says she felt that that was in the right place to be successful and beat it. She had a great team and everyone worked so well together that it felt like they were giving this disease everything they had. Tina was enrolled in the CAR-T clinical trial, which has showed very promising results, in April 2017. CAR-T clinical trials involve altering T cells so that they are “tricked” into attacking cancer cells when they otherwise normally wouldn’t. Tina temporarily relocated to Boston for treatment, and by the beginning of May, scans showed that her cancer was gone. She had a second scan in June that revealed the same results and confirmed that the cancer was in remission. She will now come back for follow-up visits to confirm continued remission. Tina is a 5th grade teacher at Queensbury School in New York. She had to leave her students in September of 2016 because she was so ill, and they were scared for her health all year long. They sent many cards and greetings. In June 2017, Tina was able to return to the classroom. They hosted a wonderful rally for her return, which is documented in a heartwarming video. Tina is married to her husband John and they have two daughters, Jenna, 22, and Mara, 19. Tina says her recovery has meant she can do what she loves – spending time with her family and teaching. She says a cancer diagnosis makes you appreciate all the little things in life and really know the good in the world.

Dr. LaCasce treats patients in Dana-Farber's adult lymphoma program. Lymphomas are blood cancers. Dr. LaCasce can speak about the clinical advances made in treating lymphoma over the past 10+ years.

VP of Media Marketing for Howes Lubricator Erika Howes joins Ordway, Merloni and Fauria on day two of the WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio Telethon.

Manager of the Red Sox John Farrell and Celtics head coach Brad Stevens join Dale, Holley and Rich Keefe on day two of the WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio Telethon.

In 2010, Bobbi had a tumor in her kidney, and had her kidney removed. She continued to see the doctor for regular check-ups and in March 2013 she learned she had metastatic kidney cancer. She was immediately treated with immunotherapy and she has continued to respond positively to treatment. She had to start a second drug recently when her doctor discovered an enlarged lymph node. Bobbi is retired from the HR department of the Department of Corrections, she worked there for 25 years. She has been married to her husband, Buddy for 51 years. They have an adult son and daughter, and have a granddaughter who is 5. Dr. Chouieri makes her smile. She says he is straightforward and patient and always answers all her questions. She said it is easy to see why his nickname is “Dr. Wonderful.”

Chris Sale of the Red Sox joins Glenn, Lou, and Christian on the second day of the 16th annual WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon.

He was diagnosed in October 2014 after having severe back pain during a golf tournament. He began treatment at another hospital until February 2015. He then was in remission but before long it was clear he was having some complications. By July his cancer was back and he started treatment at Dana-Farber, where he began a new chemotherapy regimen. By July 12th he was in a coma because of a bad reaction to the chemotherapy and when he woke up he could not move his right arm or left leg, and as a result he couldn’t walk. Mike rehabbed and by the end of August was finally able to head home. He spent every couple of weeks in the hospital for chemo and spent the time in between doing physical therapy. In early December, Mike was moving around and he started the stem cell transplant process. He spent his birthday, Christmas and New Years and 2 fantasy football championships in the hospital. By early January he was allowed to go home and spend the next few months recovering. Since last year Mike had the last of his PT scans and is now considered 18 months into remission. This is thanks to a clinical trial at Dana-Farber that was funded by donations. He still plays golf often at Merrimack golf course in Methuen and has gotten into yoga as a means of staying calm and reflecting as well as increasing his flexibility. He recently started a career as a realtor. His family includes his mom Rosemary, his dad Joe and sister Jenn.

Melissa was diagnosed with breast cancer in December of 2016. She underwent 8 rounds of chemotherapy, 2 lumpectomies, and 6 weeks of radiation. Melissa recently completed her last breast cancer treatment. Melissa is a mother to two boys, Jackson, 10 and Parker, 7. She has been married to her husband Jason for the last 15 years. She enjoys spending time with her family, exercising, going to the beach, and cheering on her boys at sports games. They play flag football, soccer, and baseball. Melissa is also an avid New England sports fan.

Kyle was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in October 2016. Kyle had been very active with sports and was very energetic, so when he began to feel chronically exhausted and complained of back pain, his mom Melissa knew something was wrong. Doctors originally thought his issues were related to muscle spasms, but blood tests revealed abnormal results, and after further testing, Kyle was diagnosed with ALL.  Kyle’s treatment has included chemotherapy and today he is cancer free. He wrapped up his chemotherapy treatment in late July and now is moving into a maintenance phase. Kyle participated in this year’s John Hancock Fenway Fantasy Day in June – he got to take swings and run the bases at Fenway. Kyle loves sports, especially hockey, baseball, basketball and lacrosse. He also enjoys reading, playing Scrabble and videogames. Kyle’s family includes his mom Melissa, dad Michael, and brothers Aidan, 11, and Trevor, 5.

Michael was diagnosed with colon cancer in June 2016 after a routine colonoscopy. He is in a clinical trial that has included surgery and chemotherapy and is still in treatment. Michael works for the US Postal Office and enjoys carpentry.

Donnamarie was diagnosed with breast cancer in January 2016. Her treatment has included chemotherapy, radiation and surgery. Donnamarie’s doctor, Dr. Erica Mayer, is the daughter of her husband’s doctor, Dr. Bob Mayer treats Michael and Mayer’s daughter, Dr. Erica Mayer, a breast oncologist in the Susan F. Smith Center for Women’s Cancer at Dana-Farber, is treating Donnamarie.

Dr. Mayer can talk about the advances made in colo-rectal cancer and the importance of men and women getting screened for this, as if caught early, it’s a very curable disease. He’s been on staff at Dana-Farber since 1974.  Besides his faculty leadership position, he continues to treat patients for gastrointestinal cancer, specializing in colon cancer.