Journey of Hope Part 3 - Fighting a Deadly Cancer

Dave Fleischer has now traveled almost 6,000 miles on the Journey of Hope in memory of his daughter, Sarah, who passed away in 2018 from a horrible cancer, cholangiocarcinoma.In this episode, Dave reports in from New England, after crossing the country and visiting several towns called Hope, several cholangiocarcinoma caregivers, patients and families. Altogether, plans call for the trip to include stops in 17 towns named Hope all across the country.A major goal of the trip, which will take Dave to all 48 contiguous states, is to help raise money to support research into this disease and during which they hope to spread awareness and bring hope to patients, caregivers, and others along the way. He reports that two weeks of the Journey, more than $30,000 has been raised – an astonishing amount, as the original goal for the entire trip was $15,000. There is now a new goal of $45,000.“That’s pretty cool,” Dave says. The road trip, in a car with a specially designed wrap promoting cholangiocarcinoma awareness, includes stops at various hospitals and healthcare institutions that specialize in research and treatment of the disease, and get-togethers with other patients, caregivers and healthcare providers who were important in Sarah's life. Last week, Dave and his wife, Linda, visited the Mayo Clinic. Cholangiocarcinoma starts in the bile duct and is an incredibly deadly cancer, which afflicts about 8,000 people in the United States each year. Most of its victims are 65 or older, but Sarah was only 31 when she was diagnosed. She passed away at age 35.Linda flew home last Sunday after 10 days on the road with Dave, so he’s now on his own – except for the many well-wishers and supporters he is meeting along the way. The journey is scheduled to end June 29 or July 1, depending on circumstances.The trip is being supported by the Foundation, which has made the specially designed Honda SUV available for the journey. Sponsors are Incyte, Ken Garff Honda, QED Therapeutics, Servier, Taiho Oncology, Welch’s Fruit Snacks and Zymeworks.And now, let’s talk with Dave Fleisher as he reports in after his second week on the Journey of Hope.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-lean-to-the-left-podcast--4719048/support.