A Connecticut man is proving there is nothing he can’t achieve, whether it is hiking at the world’s tallest mountain or defeating cancer. Both are part of his healing journey.
Life is a journey, whether you are conquering Mount Everest or Multiple Myeloma.
“Can't live with a lampshade on my head,” JP Kealy said with a laugh.
That is the attitude he’s had ever since he found out he had Multiple Myeloma in 2014.
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“Totally unexpected,” Kealy said. “Cancer wasn’t in the plans.”
At the time of his diagnosis, he was just 48-years-old.
“It's a moment in your life that you'll never forget where and when you're standing,” Annamarie Kealy, JP’s wife, said.
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Multiple Myeloma is a rare cancer that starts in the white blood cells.
“When I was a resident in training, Myeloma was about the worst disease you could have. There was essentially no treatment for it,” Dr. Michael Bar, director of benign and malignant hematology at Bennett Cancer Center at Stamford Health, said.
Bar, Kealy’s physician for nearly a decade now, says so much has changed. Since his diagnosis, the dad of four from Norwalk has undergone a series of treatments, including a stem cell transplant in 2017.
“He's been in the deepest possible remission,” Bar said. “We're unbelievably close to curing this disease. There are already experts in the field who think a small group of patients will actually be cured, and JP would fit the bill.”
From one uphill battle to another: just 11 months after his stem cell transplant, JP and Annamarie took on an 11-day trek to the doorstep of the world's tallest mountain.
“Everest was really tough,” JP said. “It was really, really hard. It was cold. But, you know, we push through it, and made it, and it’s just amazing.”
They traveled to the Everest Base Camp in Nepal in March of 2018, with the organization Moving Mountains for Multiple Myeloma. Each expedition raises money for research to accelerate treatment.
However, the Kealys also found an incredible support network, hiking alongside other survivors and caregivers.
“I’m like, 'there's no way we can do this,'” JP said. “But just being with everybody there, their support that we gave each other, it was just incredible.”
They rekindled some connections on another hiking expedition that the couple took on in 2019 at Mount Fitz Roy in Patagonia, on the border of Argentina and Chile.
“The support has been overwhelming,” Annamarie said. “The people we've hiked mountains with now are considered family.”
The Kealys are grateful to Bar for making it possible.
“We did a shout out to him at the top of Everest, and we're going to do a shout out again at the top of Kilimanjaro,” Annamarie said.
Each year, and moment, gains new meaning.
“Suddenly because now life has become more precious, all of a sudden, they're on a safari to do their entire lives,” Bar said.
They know each mount is within reach, if you just keep climbing.
“You really do live each day, because none of us are guaranteed tomorrow. So I think that was really just a turning point for us,” Annamarie said.
“Ever since the diagnosis, we said, we can't wait any more,” JP said.
In September, the Kealys are headed to Tanzania to take on Mount Kilimanjaro.
