Matt Bleakley was the picture of good health. He ate well and exercised often – just what doctors recommend.
The 27-year-old Boston man started getting headaches, though, and unexpectedly fell while playing soccer. It was vertigo, doctors said. Fresh off that diagnosis, Matt opted to celebrate an early Christmas with family in Florida, albeit with a lingering headache.
His dizziness and nausea worsened, though, and he saw a different doctor in Florida. An MRI confirmed the unfathomable for a man his age – Matt had medulloblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer that primarily affects young children. Within a week, a team of doctors developed a multi-agency, multi-state care plan that included a trifecta of treatments – surgery, radiation and chemotherapy.
Each type of treatment attacks cancer cells in a different way, so a combination of treatment options often yields the best outcomes for patients.
Step one in Matt’s treatment plan was having the tumor surgically removed from his cerebellum at the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine’s Jackson Memorial Hospital. That surgery was deemed a success.
Step two, though, presented a challenge. Because of the tumor’s location in Matt’s brain, physicians recommended proton therapy, an ultra-precise form of radiation often used to treat patients whose tumors are adjacent to vital organs. There are just 47 proton centers in the U.S. Matt considered returning to the Northeast for proton treatment, but a stroke of luck kept him in Florida for a few more months. Southwest Florida Proton – located just 20 minutes from his parents’ home in Naples – was in the final phase of testing and calibration of its ProteusONE, a state-of-the-art proton therapy system manufactured by Belgium-based IBA that is recognized as one of the most technologically advanced platforms available globally.
And then another stroke of luck came Matt’s way. Leading that cancer treatment center is Dr. Shannon MacDonald, a former Bostonian and pioneer in the field of proton therapy. MacDonald, who earned an undergraduate degree from Boston College, previously was director of base-of-skull service at Massachusetts General Hospital and an accomplished associate professor of radiation oncology at Harvard Medical School.
Because proton therapy is so precise, there is less damage to surrounding tissue and organs, and many patients report fewer side effects compared to those undergoing traditional radiation.
Following six weeks of proton therapy, Matt recently returned to Massachusetts for step three of his care plan – chemotherapy at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute at Longwood Medical Area in Boston.
Throughout his treatments, Matt has remained upbeat, like he was before his life-altering cancer diagnosis.
“Stressing out and being anxious isn’t going to help me,” said Matt, an investment specialist at Commonwealth Financial Group who co-founded On Cape, a clothing brand inspired by unforgettable moments on Cape Cod, where he was a lifeguard as a teen. “I was fortunate to be at the right place at the right time surrounded by the right people.”
An incredibly fast-spreading form of cancer, survival rates for medulloblastoma depend on an early diagnosis and effective treatment plan.
“Know your body,” MacDonald said. “If something doesn’t feel right, see a doctor as soon as possible.”
About the Author
Joseph Kascmar, director of operations at Southwest Florida Proton in Estero, Florida, is a health care executive with decades of leadership experience across health systems, physician enterprises and investor-backed health care platforms.