Go Bobby, Beat Cancer!
Donation protected
Many of you have heard about Bobby Fix being diagnosed with cancer and have generously asked what you can do to help. If you are truly interested in helping, I invite you to please read below.
Just a few weeks ago, Bobby would have told you life was good. Bobby and his amazing husband, Jeff, were on top of the world celebrating their daughter’s (Evelyn) first birthday, building their dream home, and, in spite of COVID, enjoying life. He had a lymph node biopsied and the results seemed to be taking extra-long to come back, but he was young, healthy, and felt great, so it wasn’t a major concern.
Bobby knows a bit about reacting to stressful situations having attended West Point, serving 10 years in the Army as an Infantry officer, deploying multiple times to Iraq and Afghanistan, and raising a one year old; but nothing could have prepared him for the news he received on May 27th when his doctor told him he had an extremely rare form of blood cancer known as Blastic Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cell Neoplasm (BPDCN). BPDCN “has some of the features of leukemia and lymphoma” and is so rare, especially in younger men, that the doctor told him the odds of developing this type of cancer were “one in a million.”
As any form of leukemia is considered “Stage 4”, and the terrifying Google prognosis repeatedly used words like “dismal” to describe the odds of recovery, things were not looking good. But then, in a fortuitous series of phone calls and emails, there was hope, great hope. As it turns out, a brilliant doctor at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston has been studying BPDCN over the past several years and recently developed a “game changing” medication known as Tagraxofusp that yielded very positive results during clinical trials. Moreover, this doctor was about to begin another round of clinical testing the very next week and graciously offered Bobby to take part. So, in a matter of whirlwind days, Bobby was diagnosed with a very rare, aggressive blood cancer, but was also meeting with the world’s leading expert on BPDCN.
While Bobby considers himself extremely fortunate to have a supportive family, friends, employer, and insurance company through this ordeal, receiving treatment at MD Anderson will require him and his family to spend the better part of the next eight months in the Houston area. Bobby began the first of eight treatment cycles on June 12th, each consisting of 10-14 days of aggressive in-patient chemotherapy and Tagraxofusp treatment followed by ongoing testing and close out-patient monitoring, specifically for a dangerous side-effect known as capillary leak syndrome.
The purpose of this outreach is to ease Bobby and his family’s financial burden by raising funds to offset the out-of-pocket expenses he will incur from lodging in Houston and traveling to and from San Antonio throughout his treatment. With a depressed immune system and the threat of COVID-19, short-term lodging or hotel rooms with high turnover are not safe options. He will therefore be seeking long-term lodging, which will also afford him and his family some comfort when he gets a break from the hospital. Our goal is to raise $25,000. Since we can’t stop by for a visit, drop off a meal, take him out to dinner, or even give him a hug, I ask you to consider supporting Bobby with a donation to help our friend during this trying time. If you are able, I also ask you to please share this message with others and consider donating to cancer research in the future; any money raised through this effort in excess of Bobby’s actual expenses will be donated to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Bobby and his family are extremely appreciative of all of your kind thoughts, prayers, and well wishes, they truly mean a lot! Bobby Strong!
Just a few weeks ago, Bobby would have told you life was good. Bobby and his amazing husband, Jeff, were on top of the world celebrating their daughter’s (Evelyn) first birthday, building their dream home, and, in spite of COVID, enjoying life. He had a lymph node biopsied and the results seemed to be taking extra-long to come back, but he was young, healthy, and felt great, so it wasn’t a major concern.
Bobby knows a bit about reacting to stressful situations having attended West Point, serving 10 years in the Army as an Infantry officer, deploying multiple times to Iraq and Afghanistan, and raising a one year old; but nothing could have prepared him for the news he received on May 27th when his doctor told him he had an extremely rare form of blood cancer known as Blastic Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cell Neoplasm (BPDCN). BPDCN “has some of the features of leukemia and lymphoma” and is so rare, especially in younger men, that the doctor told him the odds of developing this type of cancer were “one in a million.”
As any form of leukemia is considered “Stage 4”, and the terrifying Google prognosis repeatedly used words like “dismal” to describe the odds of recovery, things were not looking good. But then, in a fortuitous series of phone calls and emails, there was hope, great hope. As it turns out, a brilliant doctor at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston has been studying BPDCN over the past several years and recently developed a “game changing” medication known as Tagraxofusp that yielded very positive results during clinical trials. Moreover, this doctor was about to begin another round of clinical testing the very next week and graciously offered Bobby to take part. So, in a matter of whirlwind days, Bobby was diagnosed with a very rare, aggressive blood cancer, but was also meeting with the world’s leading expert on BPDCN.
While Bobby considers himself extremely fortunate to have a supportive family, friends, employer, and insurance company through this ordeal, receiving treatment at MD Anderson will require him and his family to spend the better part of the next eight months in the Houston area. Bobby began the first of eight treatment cycles on June 12th, each consisting of 10-14 days of aggressive in-patient chemotherapy and Tagraxofusp treatment followed by ongoing testing and close out-patient monitoring, specifically for a dangerous side-effect known as capillary leak syndrome.
The purpose of this outreach is to ease Bobby and his family’s financial burden by raising funds to offset the out-of-pocket expenses he will incur from lodging in Houston and traveling to and from San Antonio throughout his treatment. With a depressed immune system and the threat of COVID-19, short-term lodging or hotel rooms with high turnover are not safe options. He will therefore be seeking long-term lodging, which will also afford him and his family some comfort when he gets a break from the hospital. Our goal is to raise $25,000. Since we can’t stop by for a visit, drop off a meal, take him out to dinner, or even give him a hug, I ask you to consider supporting Bobby with a donation to help our friend during this trying time. If you are able, I also ask you to please share this message with others and consider donating to cancer research in the future; any money raised through this effort in excess of Bobby’s actual expenses will be donated to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Bobby and his family are extremely appreciative of all of your kind thoughts, prayers, and well wishes, they truly mean a lot! Bobby Strong!
Organizer and beneficiary
Andrew Teague
Organizer
Dulles, VA
Jeffrey Iles
Beneficiary