"Dr. Mato saved my life; I will forever have a spot in my heart for him and the staff at Penn Medicine. Life and health is so precious, I won’t ever take it for granted, and I realized never to sweat the small stuff anymore.”
—Louis Spivak, non-Hodgkin lymphoma survivor
Diagnosis
Louis Spivak considered himself a model of health, which is why it came as such a shock when he started experiencing pain in his side, night sweats, and sudden weight loss. When the pain didn’t subside, Louis got an MRI, which showed an enlarged spleen. Seeking a more definitive diagnosis, Louis came to Penn Medicine’s Abramson Cancer Center (ACC) where a lymph node biopsy revealed stage four large B-cell non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
When Anthony Mato, MD, explained the diagnosis to Louis and his family they were stunned. “I asked Dr. Mato four times repeatedly, ‘Am I going to live?’ He assured me yes,” Louis shared. “I looked at my family members in the room and said, ‘Stop crying, this is the best news,’ and wanted to start treatment as soon as possible.”
Treatment
Louis received EPOCH, an intensive regimen of chemotherapy intended for aggressive cancers, every three weeks for six months. He responded well to his chemo treatments, and although he was tired at first, Louis was able to regain his energy as treatment progressed. Louis’ brother gave him the nickname “Chemo Avenger,” which helped Louis believe that he was not going to lose his fight. “I was proud to be called a 'Chemo Avenger' and I think my positive attitude helped me handle treatment so well.”
With still a few weeks of treatment left, Dr. Mato did a PET scan anticipating encouraging results. “My fabulous doctor sat down with me, my brother, and sister and said, ‘This is gonna be good,’” Louis recalled. “I got very emotional. He showed us what my spleen looked like before, and said it's back to normal size. All of my tumors were gone, the lymphoma was gone. I threw myself back on the table with tears. Words can't describe my feelings of joy and happiness.”
As a way to share his gratitude, Louis has created the “Chemo Avenger” T-Shirt Campaign, with a portion of the proceeds to benefit lymphoma research at the ACC.
Cancer-free
Louis has been cancer-free for over a year and a half, and although he is incredibly grateful to the wonderful doctors at the Abramson Cancer Center, he attributes his survival to the support of his family. His entire extended family - from all over the country - rallied around him. “My son was four years old when I was going through treatment. Looking at him every day and the love he gave me as a father was the best medicine of all.”
To learn more about lymphoma research, contact Katie Dewees Detzel at (215) 746 - 1927 or kdewees@upenn.edu.