This site was set up to keep Jeff's friends, family and supporters up to date on his journey, and also take a moment to read through his previous emails that outline his treatment this far.  You will notice in his emails that Jeff has such a great sense of humor and positive outlook, no matter how tough times are.  (More will be added as we find them!)

If you would like to make a donation to help cover Jeff's traveling and medical expenses, please visit our donation site: Helping Jeff



Update on jeff

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Jeff is recovering well from his transplant and has moved out of isolation into the Hope Lodge.  His address in New York is:

American Cancer Society Hope Lodge
Attn: Jeff Bonin room 1005
132 West 32nd Street
New York, NY 10001

7.2.13
Three years ago, Jeff was living a healthy, active life. He spent his days enjoying his work in the construction industry and his weekends fishing at the lake. Life was good for this 36 year old. Almost overnight, back pain became regular and quickly turned into not being able to tie his shoes.

Eventually it was determined he had Multiple Myeloma, a blood cancer similar to leukemia. As a result, he spent a several weeks in the hospital where the cancer caused many fractures to his back and chest, resulting in him losing 5" in height. With lots of support from his family and friends and advancements in cancer research, Jeff was able to eventually undergo a tandem stem cell transplant in Little Rock, Arkansas that put him in remission for over a year.

In 2012 the cancer returned, this time with a vengeance. After 3 months of daily treatment in Arkansas, the doctors have determined that Jeff needs a different type of transplant that they cannot provide. An Allogeneic (donor) transplant allows new cells to attack his current cancerous cells and could extend Jeff's life for several decades. This type of transplant has lots of risks... immune system disorders and cell rejection just to name a couple. But, if the transplant is a success, it would be life changing.

After traveling to Minneapolis and New York to evaluate two programs for high-risk patients, Jeff has decided to move his treatment to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York City beginning in May.  MSKCC has the best patient outcomes for this procedure in high-risk patients, oversees this procedure on more patients, and is on the cutting edge of a new supplemental procedure called T-cell depletion that reduces the risk of Jeff's body rejecting the donor cells.