By RACHEL MAZZA
LOCK HAVEN- No one ever said battling cancer was going to be easy, but Mike Machinski knows the importance of staying positive and relying on the love and support of friends and family.
Six years ago, on March 15, 2004, Mike, then 31, was diagnosed with Stage 4B Advanced Hodgkin's Lymphoma. He has had chemotherapy, radiation, a stem cell transplant and is still receiving clinical trial treatments every three weeks as he continues to fight the cancer.
Now 38, Mike is a devoted husband to his wife, Becky, and a loving father to the couple's three daughters, Kylie, 12; Mya 11, and Emma, 9. He tries to spend as much time with the girls as possible by coaching their soccer and softball teams. The family also has three Labradors that they love very much.
Mike is the son of Nancy Machinski, former ballroom dance instructor at Rachael's Dance studio in Lock Haven.
He is a graduate of Montoursville Area High School, where he was a member of the football and baseball teams. He attended Mansfield University and worked as an environmental waste management sales representative before his illness forced him to retire.
Mike and his family have maintained a web page on www.caringbridge.org, a site for victims and families suffering from cancer. The site follows Mike's battle with the disease through personal updates and journal entries from Mike, his family and friends.
His battle has been long and trying with many hardships and set backs. There were hospital in-patient stays, operations, blood transfusions and illness that came with his treatments.
Now, Marie Munro and her boyfriend, Don Pautot, family friends from Antes Fort, have put together a benefit to assist Mike and his family with the ongoing medical bills they are unable to pay.
"I know how hard it is to pay those bills and how hard it is for Becky. My husband died of cancer about seven years ago and I am still paying off the bills. Becky had to start working and with the three girls, it's very, very hard for her," said Munro. "I knew I just had to do something."
Mike's mother and Munro's close friend, Nancy Machinski is very thankful for the help.
"I can't thank her enough, it makes me get emotional when I think about it. It's so wonderful to have people who care," Nancy said.
Several years ago, Nancy was a ballroom dance instructor at Rachael's Dance studio in Lock Haven.
The benefit is open to anyone and will be held on Saturday, Aug. 21, from 1 to 6 p.m. in Market House, 1445 Dewey Ave., near Foy Avenue in Williamsport. The benefit will include four live bands, six door prizes every hour, a quarter auction, 50-50 raffles, a Chinese auction featuring gift certificates and gift items donated by friends and local businesses. The entry cost is $5 per person, $2.50 per person for children under 10. For those unable to attend, monetary donations can be sent directly to the Jersey Shore State Bank, care of the "Mike Machinski's Benefit."
According to Mike's journal on www.caringbridge.org, he was in remission for just eight weeks when another lump was discovered in October 2004. During October, November and December of that year, Mike went through three cycles of I.C.E. chemotherapy for the re-occurring Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Each cycle required him to be an inpatient at the hospital for four days. According to his journal, this chemo regiment is very aggressive and requires frequent blood transfusions.
Since Mike was in remission for a short time and had a quick re-occurrence of his disease, the next step in beating his cancer was a stem cell transplant. Mike received a full Allogeneic-related Stem Cell Transplant at MD Anderson in Houston, Texas, on Feb. 14, 2005. On May 18, the family learned that Mike was once again cancer free.
In September 2005, Mike started back at work after almost a year on disability, but then in November, Mike's PET scan showed the cancer was back. More chemotherapy followed, and April 6, 2006 was the beginning of three weeks of radiation treatments.
Mike's summer of 2006 included 60 radiation treatments. He had radiation five days a week for 12 weeks. From that, the results came back that the cancer had not gone away, and in early November 2006, he began chemotherapy again which took him through the holidays. In January 2007, he had another PET scan showing the chemo had not been effective in slowing growth of the cancer in all areas.
During the summer of 2008, fluid collected in his chest cavity and he had to have it drained three times in August to allow the right lung to expand and help with his breathing.
In December, Mike was accepted for a trial by Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, but it required him to be off steroids for at least two weeks and start chemo to shrink the tumors. He began more chemotherapy treatments, which started in January 2009, but in February, his body responded negatively to the chemo and he almost lost his battle.
After a difficult series of treatments, he was able to begin the clinical trial in August 2009. Two months later, Mike was no longer able to continue the trials because his body was not responding well and the cancer had grown, instead of decreasing. He developed shingles and a fractured rib where the cancer ate through his bones. He continued with his chemo treatments that were very hard on his body and caused Mike to start losing teeth.
In December, some of Mike's friends who were also battling cancer referred him to Dr. Owen O'Connor at New York University Hospital, where Mike currently is being treated. Under the care of Dr. O'Connor and his team, Mike again began chemo treatments and fortunately, the cancer finally began to shrink.
He started the clinical trial medication last April. He did two, 21-day cycles and was declared in remission on May 20, five and a half years since his last remission.
Mike still returns to NYU every 21 days for a maintenance infusion, and must work on gaining weight, rebuilding muscle tissue and increasing his breathing abilities. But for now, he is determined to enjoy life to the best of his ability.
"I am happy to be here and spending time with the four girls in my life. Life is good and we are enjoying as much as we can. Thanks for all your congratulations and I hope you are all doing well and enjoying your summer, as well as your life," Mike said at the end of his latest journal entry. "Stay positive and never give up!"
Anyone interested in attending the Aug. 21 benefit may call Marie Munro at 570-398-2691.
