Kevin Bogan's Cancer Fight

In October 2015 my Dad, Kevin Bogan, was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive soft tissue cancer, after a tumor the size of a softball spontaneously appeared in his thigh.

Kevin was immediately put on a treatment plan which includes four months of intensive inpatient chemotherapy, followed by five weeks of daily radiation therapy, and finally concluding with the surgical removal of the cancer mass. Reconstructive surgery and physical therapy will follow. The size and location of the tumor makes it likely that the removal will leave his leg permanently damaged. After all of this, there is still a risk of recurrence.

Although many chemotherapy treatments are done on an outpatient basis, my dad's treatment requires him to be admitted into the hospital to recive his chemotherapy. He will spend one week in the hosptial, receiving chemotherapy drugs that are considered so toxic that nurses considered to be "child-bearing age” must wear special protective gear when handling the drugs. He is then home for two weeks before returning to begin the cycle again. We'll repeat this process 6 times before beginning radiation.

The extreme nature of this treatment plan, as well as its many side effects, means that my dad is unable to work and therefore has no income. As his full-time caregiver, nurse, driver, and companion, my mother (Lois Bogan) is only able to work sporadically.

In addition to medical bills, insurance premiums, prescriptions, and travel expenses (100 miles to and from Fox Chase Cancer Center), the regular life expenses (mortgage, utilities, and groceries) are beginning to mount.

My family is in need of any help you can offer at this time!

Many of you know my dad personally. You may have grown up together or worked with him. Maybe you know him from Church, or the community, or through my Mom. Maybe he coached your children. I know many of my friends remember that Mr. Bogan was always there for us, whether he was coaching our teams, chaperoning our dances, leading our catechism groups, or giving us a safe and welcoming house to hang in (poker, anyone?). I know he has touched many of your lives.

If you do know Kevin, you know he's an incredibly hard-working and generous man. He's a U.S. Veteran. He is a devoted husband, father, and brother. He's a man that would work a 12-hour shift, from midnight to noon, just so he could make it in time to pick my brothers and I up from school, and be home to coach our teams. He's the man you call when you need help moving, or building, or cleaning. He's a man who I cannot remember, in my entire life, ever once asking for help with anything. And so I'm asking for him. I'm asking you to please help us if you are able.

How can you help?
1. Donate any little bit you can
2. Share our story as widely as you can
3. Send positivity (wishes, prayers, thoughts) our way

Everything, anything, you can do to help us; to help Kevin in his fight against cancer is so greatly appreciated. You will never know just how much your generosity and kindness mean to us. There are no words to express the depth of our gratitude.