Patrick Kent

PJ NEEDS YOUR HELP!!

At 28 years old, in late May 2019, PJ had been feeling lots of aches and pains which he thought were strains from too much golf. On Thursday, May 30 he felt that it was time to go to the ER because it became unbearable.

There were blood tests and exams that proved that he did, in fact have something going on. He was sent to see a Hematologist/Oncologist who reviewed everything but sent him home to rest while the tests were being conducted over the course of a few days and to return if a fever spiked. A fever spiked the following day which landed him in the hospital.

More tests proved that platelets were drastically dropping quickly and they still did not know what the cause was. He was sent home to rest with Advil/Tylenol/Motrin and wait.

By Sunday the pain was unbearable once again with fevers. Back at the hospital another hematologist brought up that they were considering looking for lymphoma or leukemia and that it would take a few hours.

Their final conclusion was Epstein Barr virus which causes infectious mono.

As this is a virus, there is no medication to prescribe. Bedrest and Tylenol/Advil until it gets better. Back home he went and was following Drs. orders. By Wednesday he was feeling better until Friday when he called to tell me that he felt much worse than ever. We finally made it to University of Pennsylvania ER where he was admitted.

After a few hours we knew it was more than EBV. It took 2 days for them to figure out just what type of cancer it was as it was just developing. Our question was did the 3 other trips to the ER miss something. The answer was “NO.”

The leukemia is in the bone marrow. B Cell Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia is what he is fighting. He will be at Penn until Mid-July 2019 then treated as an outpatient for many months after that.

PJ is living with his girlfriend Devon in Glenolden. He graduated from Strath Haven High School and Syracuse University, and he works at Liberty Mutual as a claims adjustor. He loves to golf and loves all things NFL. He has a huge heart – he volunteerd in the past with causes including supporting adults with developmental disabilities through Arc of Delaware County and the Special Olympics.

He has so many people cheering for him, including childhood friends from grade school and his sister, four step sisters, Mom, Dad, Step Mom and Step Dad, Grand Mother, Aunts, and Uncles. He has many, many people pulling for him.

Please check back here regularly for updates as he continues to fight the fight of his life.

Family and friends of Patrick (PJ) Kent are raising money for the nonprofit Help Hope Live to fund uninsured medical expenses associated with his diagnosis.

This illness came on very suddenly and aggressively and treatment will be ongoing for many years. PJ has always been healthy and active, working with special needs communities, always being physically fit and generally enjoying life. This is something that will keep him motivated to get through treatment and back to living the life he loves living.

The necessary treatments will require many months of in patient as well as out patient care. Donations will help offset the deductibles, medical bills not covered by insurance and any other unexpected or unforseen bills that may arise.

You can help by hosting a fundraiser to support PJ, perhaps a golf outing (PJ Loves Golf), or a beef & beer, share his page to your social media platforms, or suggest any event that you wish to host. Or you can simply make a donation. Any and everything is helpful and appreciated.

PJ chose to fundraise for Help Hope Live in part because Help Hope Live assures fiscal accountability of funds raised and tax deductibility to the full extent allowed by law for contributors. Donors can be sure that the funds donated will be used only to pay or reimburse medically-related expenses for PJ. To make a tax-deductible donation to this fundraising campaign, click on the Give button. And please consider sharing this link with others so they may donate as well.

You can also find check instructions at the bottom of his page.

Thank you for your support.

For more information, please contact Help Hope Live at 800.642.8399.