Hope Was Always There

Up until 2008, I was known for two things: my wealth and my strength. People respected me — or at least what I had accomplished. My story really began in 1997 when a $5,000 bonus check sparked a new path. I built my first home, began investing in raw land, and converted it into residential and commercial developments. Over time, I elevated my investments, acquiring large parcels of land that many people envied.

In 2006, I reached what I thought was the pinnacle of success: completing a multi-million-dollar medical office condominium. I still remember the President of Susquehanna Bank visiting the raw site and saying, “You know you are trying to achieve something that has never been done without an institution to stand behind it.” I pressed on anyway, secured the financing, and saw the project through to completion.

My mother passed away from cancer just before the project was finished, and I named the building after her: The Phyllis L. Green Building. I had become one of the wealthiest men in the county, surrounded by influential people and enjoying my success.

Then, in 2007, everything began to unravel.

The Financial Collapse

As Lehman Brothers and other financial institutions began to fall, the housing market collapsed. What the nation was watching on television, I was living in real time. Creditors were forced by the Federal Reserve to call in loans on developers and homebuilders. The once-wise saying, “Buy land — they’re not making any more of it,” now mocked me. My assets became toxic to the banks, my cash was gone, and by 2012 I was forced to liquidate everything and file for bankruptcy.

From a $5,000 check I had built a net worth of $13 million — and it was all gone.

During this time, I clung to Hebrews 11:1: “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” That verse kept me from losing my mind. But my pride had been broken. In 2014, I left the family business to start a new career as a mortgage lender. Surprisingly, I thrived at it and began to climb the ladder once again.

The Cancer Diagnosis

Then came May 2015. I lost 50 pounds in a single month and went to see my doctor. Bloodwork and CT scans revealed a 9-cm tumor on my left kidney. It felt like the story of Job — my wealth had been taken, my business gone, and now my health was crumbling.

Within weeks, my left kidney was removed. But the news worsened — the cancer had spread. It was in my left lung, eating through my sixth and eighth rib, spreading to my skull and even near my aorta. Death seemed inevitable.

But instead of giving up, I started a pallet manufacturing company in January 2016. My wife would later say it was the best medicine for me — a distraction that forced me to keep moving forward.

The Fight for Life

Doctors gave me 2½ years to live. My anxiety was intense, but my faith endured. I found an online community called SMARTPATIENTS that gave me hope, especially when I learned about Interleukin-2 therapy — a treatment with only an 8% chance of a cure, but still a chance.

I asked my church to pray specifically that my T-cells would be elevated and trained to attack the cancer. Then I sought out the best doctors I could find, eventually choosing Dr. Suresh Nair of Lehigh Valley Health Network.

The Interleukin-2 treatments were brutal. My first round ended with me going code blue and being slapped awake by nurses. Two more visits and four more rounds later — with two more code blues — Dr. Nair stopped the treatments for my safety and sent me to Johns Hopkins.

At Johns Hopkins, I met Dr. Antanorokus, who placed me in a Phase 3 clinical trial using Yervoy and Opdivo. Because my T-cells had already been activated by the earlier treatments, Dr. Nair believed the timing was perfect.

The Turning Point

In November 2017, I received my first infusion. By Christmas Eve, my body was so weak that I could barely celebrate. That night, my wife prayed through the night — asking the Lord either to heal me or take me home.

That was the night I chose to forgive my family for past wounds. I confessed my anger to God and left it at the cross. Later my pastor reminded me that it was when Job forgave his friends that God restored him — a truth that would soon become my reality.

After my second infusion, I underwent a biopsy on the rib tumor. The nurse commented that there seemed to be more water than tumor. My wife and I left wondering if this meant the tumors were dying. A follow-up scan confirmed it — the cancer was retreating.

Two more infusions later, I felt so strong that I went to the gym and benched 315 pounds for the first time in years. I dropped to my knees and thanked God for healing me.

The Miracle

On the day of the next scan, my church prayed that all the tumors would be gone. When Dr. Antanorokus came into the room, he was smiling from ear to ear and said the words I’ll never forget:

“It’s gone.”

The cancer was completely gone. My doctor told me, “Leave the hospital and never come back. I’ve never seen anything like your case. You are a miracle child.”

I just smiled — because I believe in the God of miracles.

Hope had always been there. And just like Job, my life was restored.