{"id":36102,"date":"2020-11-21T14:11:35","date_gmt":"2020-11-21T21:11:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/?p=36102"},"modified":"2022-11-15T14:55:46","modified_gmt":"2022-11-15T21:55:46","slug":"hockey-fights-cancer-has-one-goal-lifting-spirits-for-small-cell-lung-cancer-patient","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/hockey-fights-cancer-has-one-goal-lifting-spirits-for-small-cell-lung-cancer-patient\/","title":{"rendered":"Hockey Fights Cancer has one goal: Lifting spirits"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>
\"Derek
Derek Babb with his personalized Hockey Fights Cancer jersey personally signed by his favorite all-time player, Joe Sakic. Photo courtesy of Derek Babb.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Derek Babb remembers it clearly, the game in 1999, when he sat beside his buddy who had bomb diggity seats \u2013 the best he\u2019d ever had – for a Colorado Avalanche game<\/a>. Then, to top it off, a handful of Denver Broncos players arrived to celebrate their recent Super Bowl Championship<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Babb could not believe his luck and he cherishes the memory as one of his all-time best sports experiences. Until something even better happened this summer.<\/p>\n

The Avs hockey stick day<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The day didn\u2019t start out that great. In fact, it hadn\u2019t been a very good few months. Babb, with his Avs-themed mask covering his nose and mouth, made his way into the UCHealth Cancer Care and Hematology Clinic<\/a> in Loveland. He sat down to start yet another round of immunotherapy.<\/p>\n

As he settled in, his oncologist, Dr. Douglas Kemme<\/a>, whom Babb had been working with since he was first diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer in May, appeared from around the corner with a long stick in his hand.<\/p>\n

Kemme had an Av\u2019s hockey stick that had been autographed by numerous players.<\/p>\n

\u201cWow,\u201d Babb said as he looked over the signatures.<\/p>\n

Babb\u2019s roommate, Chris Blackburn was there for the magic moment.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis face!\u201d Blackburn said, \u201cAnd then when he got to hold it, that was good, but when he confirmed that he got to keep it \u2014 he was better than a kid at Christmas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bomb diggity.<\/p>\n

\"patient
Derek and Dr. Douglas Kemme after Kemme gave him the Colorado Avalanche-signed hockey stick during one of Derek’s session of immunotherapy for small cell lung cancer. Photo by UCHealth.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Could it be COVID?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

This spring, during the first wave of the pandemic, Babb didn\u2019t feel well but the thought that it could be COVID-19 \u2014 made Babb hesitant to go to the hospital. News of the worldwide novel coronavirus was scary, even in his home town of Loveland, Colorado. Babb had heard of people going to the hospital with COVID-19, and not coming out. He did not want to be that person. So he waited.<\/p>\n

Months passed. The number of people infected with COVID-19 had soared, and then fallen, and Babb still felt horrible. He had trouble breathing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI kept telling him to see a doctor,\u201d Blackburn said. \u201cFinally, I said, \u2018Listen here, if you\u2019re not ready by 3, I\u2019m taking you, or I\u2019m calling an ambulance.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Babb got ready and they went to the emergency room at UCHealth Medical Center of the Rockies<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Worse than COVID-19<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Babb got a COVID-19 test immediately, but it would take a few days for the results to come back. In the meantime, doctors ordered a few more tests, which showed Babb\u2019s lung full of fluid.<\/p>\n

Babb spent the next six days in the hospital while a chest tube drained the liquid, at which time he also had an X-ray of his lungs.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t COVID-19 but something potentially worse: lung cancer.<\/p>\n

Starting treatment for lung cancer<\/strong><\/h3>\n

At his first appointment with Kemme shortly after his diagnosis, Babb wore a mask sporting the logo of the Colorado Avalanche. He\u2019d received it from a fellow Av\u2019s enthusiast and coworker. It\u2019s the only mask he likes to wear. He also had on an Avalanche jersey and hat, part of his huge sports collection in his \u201cman cave\u201d at home.<\/p>\n

Kemme knew that UCHealth is the official health partner of the Colorado Avalanche. To enhance patients\u2019 experience and to help them feel better, players and mascots from Colorado sports teams often visit patients to inspire hope for those experiencing tough challenges.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen our patients receive a special recognition or gift from their heroes, the smile is from ear to ear,\u201d Kemme said. \u201cThey follow the teams and players and to be part of their world makes their world a bit more manageable.\u201d<\/p>\n

So Kemme sought out the hockey stick for Babb. Any little boost, he thought, would be needed for the battle ahead.<\/p>\n

Small cell lung cancer<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The tumor in Babb\u2019s chest was large: 15 cm. It occupied the whole right side of his lung and interfered with his lung function.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a very special type of lung cancer called small cell, which is different from all non-small cell types,\u201d Kemme said. \u201cWhen it is limited to just one half of the chest like with Derek, there is maybe a 20-30% chance of a 5-year cure. It\u2019s not the best, but there is a fighting chance. And this young kid has the most positive attitude.\u201d<\/p>\n

At one point, Kemme told Babb that he may have only 6-9 months to live.<\/p>\n

Babb admitted that the diagnosis was devastating, but he immediately wanted to beat it. He leans on family and friends, including Blackburn, for support, and they\u2019ve helped him to hold onto that optimism.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve got to stay positive,\u201d Blackburn said. \u201cWhen we first found out, another coworker was over that night, and she got home and Googled (small-cell lung cancer). Then I Googled it. I told Derek we have to figure out how to think positive about it and not about all the bad stuff I had just read. Then I told him, \u2018Please don\u2019t ever Google it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Babb has always had a positive outlook on life \u2014 a trait his friends and family admire \u2014 and cancer wasn\u2019t going to change that.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou keep positive and positive things happen to you. As dark as it can be, you stay positive and do the right thing, things will turn around for you,\u201d Babb said. \u201cIt is what it is, and I\u2019m making the best out of the days I have remaining.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Derek,
The ‘man cave” of Derek Babb, who is getting immunotherapy for small cell lung cancer, holds all his sports memorabilia including a signed Avs hockey stick he recently got from his oncologist.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The battle against lung cancer<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Babb started treatment right away, with four cycles of a combination of chemotherapy and immunotherapy. It shrunk the tumor to 8 cm and his lung started functioning properly again.<\/p>\n

Providing immunotherapy for small cell lung cancer alongside chemotherapy is a newer treatment tool, Kemme explained. Chemotherapy kills the fast-growing cancerous cells with chemicals. Immunotherapy works on the cancer in a different fashion by altering the immune system to recognize cancer, allowing the body to fight it directly.<\/p>\n

Immunotherapy does have some side effects, but nothing compared to chemotherapy, Kemme said. Those side effects don\u2019t compound as treatment continues, so it can be used alongside chemotherapy and radiation to make those treatments more effective.<\/p>\n

After chemo, Babb had radiation therapy. He will continue immunotherapy for the next year and in mid-December, he will have a CT scan to see if the radiation has helped.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven with a big and scary tumor, there is still hope that he will have a long-term response,\u201d Kemme said.<\/p>\n

Babb is hopeful. He feels better now, physically and mentally. He recently marked six months since his diagnosis, and is on his way to living longer than the 6-9 months that Dr. Kemme had warned about.<\/p>\n

\u201cI promised him I\u2019d beat those odds,\u201d Babb said. \u201cIt\u2019s been six months, and I feel I\u2019ll pass that prognosis.\u201d<\/p>\n

One more surprise<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Inspired by Babb’s story and his love for their team, the Colorado Avalanche, with help from UCHealth, orchestrated one more surprise for Babb. Under the impression that he would be doing an interview with Altitude Sports’ Kyle Keefe, Babb joined the sports anchor via a virtual call. But Keefe had a few more surprises for Babb.<\/p>\n

“I expected to talk with Kyle and was super excited to talk to him,” Babb said. “But then the other guys joined \u2014 that was unbelievable. It just made my day. It was just fantastic.”<\/p>\n

Watch the surprise<\/a> Kyle and the Colorado Avalanche had for Babb.<\/p>\n

\"Dr.
UCHealth oncologist Dr. Douglas Kemme, left, surprised his patient, Derek Babb, with a Joe Sakic-signed jersey during a virtual call with Altitude Sports announcers Kyle Keefe and John Michael Lyles, and Colorado Av’s players, Ian Cole and TJ Compher.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“It\u2019s humbling,” Babb said. “It\u2019s just been unbelievable what everyone has done at UCHealth for me, primary with my outcome, but also all this other stuff. This was a bucket list-type of experience.”<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Derek Babb remembers it clearly, the game in 1999, when he sat beside his buddy who had bomb diggity seats \u2013 the best he\u2019d ever had – for a Colorado Avalanche game. Then, to top it off, a handful of Denver Broncos players arrived to celebrate their recent Super Bowl Championship. Babb could not believe […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2164,"featured_media":36373,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[28,49,773,1046,189,3357,6836,1727,170,4843,4670],"class_list":["post-36102","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-cancer-care-oncology","tag-cancer-treatment","tag-colorado-avalanche","tag-health-screening","tag-immunotherapy","tag-lung-and-respiratory-care-pulmonology","tag-lung-and-thoracic-cancer","tag-lung-cancer","tag-lung-cancer-program","tag-lung-cancer-screening-program-at-uchealth","tag-lung-tumor-testing-and-clinical-trials"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHockey Fights Cancer has one goal: Lifting spirits - 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