Help Gentel: Stage IV Colorectal Cancer

Hello Family, Friends, Colleagues, Loved Ones and Friends of Friends,

Eight years ago, our very dear brother-in-law, Gentel, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of colorectal cancer at the age of 33. He never imagined a medical visit in 2014 would change his life forever. Those of you who know him know that he is an extraordinary human being. He is funny, loving, faithful, unbelievably strong, and always puts his friends and family before himself. Please read his story below and consider donating.

Gentel’s diagnosis came shortly after the exciting news that his wife and partner of many years, Risa, was pregnant with their first child. His particular colorectal cancer was a rare case that doctors had never seen before, with Gentel having two separate tumors on opposite ends of the colon. Due to the aggressiveness of his cancer, he had to endure chemotherapy and radiation treatments every day while continuing to be a supportive husband and soon-to-be father. Gentel and Risa lived in New York City, having recently relocated from Chicago, far from family and friends. During that time, doctors at NYU Langone & Memorial Sloan Kettering informed Gentel and Risa that because of his unique cancer situation, they wanted to present his case at an upcoming colorectal surgery conference to gather other second opinions on the next steps. Gentel's Colorectal Surgeon advised Gentel to have surgery to remove the tumors. However, during the surgery, the team discovered that the cancer had spread beyond what was found in the scans and decided to remove his large intestines and portions of his lower abdomen. This surgery resulted in Gentel having a permanent ileostomy that he will have to live with for the rest of his life.

With the birth of their son, Devin, there was a lot of happiness in their home, even with Gentel’s body slowly deteriorating from cancer. Shortly after Devin was born, Gentel had to continue with daily chemotherapy. The NYU Cancer Board unanimously decided that Gentel would need to go through an innovative form of treatment called Proton Therapy, a highly advanced and targeted form of radiation. Since this was a unique and expensive form of treatment, many hospitals and medical facilities in the U.S. did not offer this treatment; the closest center performing Proton Therapy was 2+ hours away from home. Having to drive 4+ hours a day for Proton Therapy treatments with a newborn and lack of sleep was challenging on top of still receiving treatments in Manhattan at the same time. Gentel was one of the first of his cancer to receive Proton Therapy. Since there was no record of colorectal cancer cases utilizing this treatment at the time, insurance denied coverage, charging them over $100,000. Their case had gone into arbitration three times with considerable evidence of support showing a need for Gentel to go through this particular treatment, but coverage was still denied.

Continuous chemotherapy, procedures and other treatments made constant and hefty medical bills pile up, including some not covered by insurance. Gentel was in remission for a couple of months, but a reoccurrence of the cancer came back towards the end of 2017. The changes in treatment were taking a toll on Gentel’s physical and mental health. Luckily, Risa’s workplace has been so supportive and approved her transfer to their Chicago office so they could be closer to family and friends.

Upon returning to Chicago, Gentel transferred treatment from NYU Langone to Northwestern Memorial Hospital. After various chemotherapy, the Northwestern Oncology Board reached out to Mayo Clinic in Minnesota for a second opinion on the next steps of treatment. Since then, Gentel’s cancer has advanced to stage 4 rectal cancer. Due to his unique and extremely rare situation with his cancer, he has a medical team of oncologists from Mayo Clinic, Northwestern & University of Chicago consulting on his case and other specialists.

In March, Gentel’s current chemotherapy infusion treatments were deemed no longer effective, and they were told they had no real options left. Thankfully, he qualified for a clinical trial at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN; however, it would require him to do immunotherapy treatments there every two weeks. So with testing and treatments twice a month, Gentel, Risa and Devin drive a roundtrip 12 hours to Rochester from Chicago and back while continuing to see the specialists back at Northwestern for other ailments. The frequent travel to Minnesota for the clinical trial has also added other unexpected heavy expenses.

As you can imagine, more than eight years of battling cancer has brought not only a physical and mental burden to Gentel but also a large amount of financial burden to their family. Medical bills have piled up for the treatment and care for Gentel: Chemo, radiation, biopsies, surgeries, ER visits and hospital stays, and leg braces for his crippling nerve issues and foot drop. They also had to change their car and add hand controls so Gentel could continue driving to his treatments on his own during COVID since Risa could not accompany him. This is all just a short list of examples of the expenses the Cabrera Family has endured during this difficult time.

Gentel is the most courageous and inspiring person we have ever known. He is fighting for his life to be here for Risa and their 7-year-old son, Devin. So many people have asked how they can help. Together we can help ease Gentel and Risa's financial burden so Gentel can continue to focus on receiving the best care possible. Please consider donating what you can. Any donation large or small will be a significant help.

Thank you!

Darryl and Jay Sanchez