Jonathan Warrey had a lingering cough and had been feeling a bit fatigued, which was unusual for him. His wife urged him to get it checked out.
Then his provider called with news that changed everything.
“He said, ‘You need to come in immediately,’” said Warrey.
Warrey was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, a rare cancer that affects bone marrow and blood, and it requires immediate hospital admission.
But there was an issue with this plan: His daughter Grace was getting married in two days. Friends and family were already on their way, traveling in from around the country.
“I spoke with an oncologist, and they said, ‘This is life and death stuff we’re dealing with,’” Warrey said.
But for Warrey, missing his daughter’s wedding wasn’t an option. He wasn’t feeling sick and couldn’t imagine missing one of the biggest moments of her life.
Warrey was admitted on Thursday, evaluated and, after careful consideration from his care team, he was released just in time for the weekend. Treatment would begin the following week.
Warrey walked his daughter down the aisle. The wedding, which took place on a family farmstead, remains one of his most treasured memories. And although it was impossible to completely forget about the diagnosis, he didn’t let it cloud the entire day.
“You can still celebrate joy,” he said. “Even knowing you have something hard ahead.”
Staying close by for care
The following Tuesday, Warrey was admitted to Sanford Roger Maris Cancer Center where he began aggressive treatment.
Receiving treatment at Sanford Health wasn’t a given. In fact, Warrey has been receiving his primary care at another hospital in town. With the diagnosis, he also considered traveling to larger, nationally known institutions.
But after a conversation with a friend, Warrey felt confident in his decision to receive treatment at Sanford Health.
“She walked through the resources that Sanford has and explained the investment that they’ve made in oncology,” said Warrey.
Staying in Fargo for his care also meant he and his family wouldn’t have to uproot their lives for months of treatment much further out of town. His support system was nearby to visit and to help his family if they were struggling.
And the choice never felt like a compromise on quality.
“People from around the state of North Dakota are coming to Roger Maris instead of going to University of Minnesota, Mayo Clinic or Cleveland Clinic because of the investments made in health care here,” said Warrey, “especially the investments in the expertise – physicians, nurses, radiologists, MRI technicians.”
Throughout treatment, Warrey remained impressed by the way his care team, which included Seth Malikse, M.D., and Richard Sheppard, M.D., made decisions backed by the latest research and science. It was evident that they were both highly trained and experts in their field.
Beyond that, the team was also passionate about education. Any question Warrey had about leukemia, cancer or treatment, Dr. Maliske, Dr. Sheppard or one of the nurses could answer. Warrey never felt rushed through his appointment.
“I felt confident that they were saving my life,” he said. “That turned out to be true.”
Looking ahead to his next chapter
In the end, Warrey went through six rounds of chemotherapy. And while there were some hard days, he felt that he was able to live pretty normally throughout the process.
“I’m grateful for the advances in care,” he said. “They figured out how to make my chemo less harsh, and I had very few side effects from it.”
Warrey’s last chemotherapy appointment was a few months ago, and he can feel his body is healing. A recent bone marrow biopsy revealed that Warrey is cancer free and officially in remission. He’s relieved and slowly working back into the pace of life before cancer.
Whatever happens next, Warrey feels deeply grateful for the care he received “in his own backyard” at Sanford Health.
“There’s a chance I relapse,” said Warrey. “But I’m armed with more knowledge about the fundamentals of leukemia because I came to Roger Maris and worked with these physicians.”
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Posted In Cancer, Cancer Screenings, Cancer Treatments, Fargo
