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3rd Annual Darin Gooda Fundraising Benefit in Support of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada |
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Contributed by Darin
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Friday, 02 March 2007 |
On April 1st, 2004 I was diagnosed with CML (Chronic Myeloid Leukemia).
I had been battling a throat infection for almost three months when my
specialist finally decided to remove my tonsils. On March 25th, 2004 I
went in for the surgery to have them removed and five days after the
surgery a large blood vessel in my throat broke and starting mass
bleeding.
My Mother was in town for five days to see me through the initial process of having my tonsils removed. The morning that she was to get on a plane and head back was the morning we went into emergency to solve the problem of the bleeding. Upon arrival at emergency they did a series of blood tests to see how much blood I had actually lost. I remember telling my Mom that she better get going or she was going to miss her flight. She calmly replied, “I am not leaving until we both get out of this place”.
We never got to leave that day and Mom missed her flight. Approximately twenty four hours later I was diagnosed with cancer. When you are in your late teens and early twenties you always try to envision where you will be and what you will be doing when you turn thirty, forty, fifty, etc. I had turned thirty about two weeks prior and I can guarantee you that I am not the only one on this planet that will say that they will never see themselves flat on their back in a hospital wondering if they will get to see year thirty one.
Thankfully, I did get to see year thirty one. It has been almost three years since that day and all I have to complain about is the same things that you or anybody else complains about, and that’s the weather.
I did not have to go through chemo. I did not have to go through radiation. I did not lose my hair. I did not have to have additional surgery. I did not have to miss two years of work. I do not have to make weekly trips to the hospital and today I am cancer free with a bit of a catch. How is this possible you ask?
Gleevec! Also known as Imatinib in the medical world. I take 400mg in the form of a pill every day with my lunch and my reward for doing so is life. If you have ever wondered where and what they do with your money when you donate it, well you need to look no further than me. The reason why I get to live the life I live today is because of a doctor in the United States that was funded by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Less than ten years ago that very doctor discovered Gleevec, and the only reason why he did was because of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Unfortunately for me and the many others taking the drug, this is not a long term solution. There is only one known cure for leukemia and that is a bone marrow transplant, and if you have seen the type of success that patients have with that, you will understand completely why any other alternative is tried first. Sooner or later this drug will stop taking and when it does the cancer will be back. From here on in my life has now become a race against time. It is a race against time to keep building on the discovery of Gleevec in order to pick up where it leaves off. The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society continue to fund the same doctor that made the discovery in the first place and because of that, phase two was approved by the FDA in December. What does this mean you ask? Well it means that a second life is potentially waiting for me when this drug finally runs it course. The money truly is making a difference!
Even with incredible developments such as the ones I just mentioned the numbers still do not favor a positive outcome for most. In 2007 approximately 4,100 Canadians (2,400 men, 1,700 women) will develop leukemia and in the same period, approximately 2,200 will die. Of those who develop leukemia, very few will ever find a perfect marrow match. Even if they do only 1 in 10 will actually successfully complete the transplant. And for that 10% that make it past the transplant stage, there is still only a 40% chance of survival.
In less than three years my friends, my family, and I have raised over $75,000.00 to help with the fight against cancer. The majority of that money has been raised through fundraising benefits and my participating in endurance events such as 100 mile bike rides and marathons. This year I am continuing that trend by participating in my first triathlon which is to take place in May of 2007. I hope that you are able to contribute to that total this year by donating to the 3rd Annual Darin Gooda Fundraising Benefit in Support of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society which will take place on March 17th, 2007 at the Valley Gardens Community Center in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Sincerely,
Darin Gooda
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3rd Annual Fundraiser 
