HopeCONNECTION
Vol. 26 | No. 2 | Spring 2026
A Second Opinion Becomes a Second Chance
You helped Dan hold onto Hope — literally!
Dan says his daughter’s life — and his own second chance — are only possible because of City of Hope®. Your generosity fueled this victory!
When Dan Trombley was suddenly diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer at age 37, the news was devastating — not only because the disease had already spread to his liver, but also because he was told there was nothing more doctors could do.
A career Navy Chief Warrant Officer, Dan had always been physically fit and healthy. But after months of fatigue and pain, tests revealed advanced colon cancer with tumors occupying nearly twothirds of his liver. His local care team in Virginia recommended chemotherapy to extend his life, but said surgery — the only
potential path to a cure — was impossible.
“Every other doctor said, ‘It’s over, you’re done, there’s nothing we can do,’” Dan recalls.
Going for the cure
Refusing to accept that answer, Dan began researching on his own. Through an online colorectal cancer support group, he learned about City of Hope and its reputation for treating complex and advanced cancers. He reached out directly to Yuman Fong, M.D., chair of the Department of Surgery at City of Hope and the Sangiacomo
Family Chair in Surgical Oncology.
Dr. Fong emailed back the very next day. After reviewing Dan’s case, Dr. Fong saw something others had missed: a patient who was young, strong and potentially eligible for an aggressive surgical approach.
Mindful of Dan’s home base in Virginia, Dr. Fong offered to set him up with a surgeon he’d trained who practiced at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. But Dan’s mind was made up.
“I really wanted Dr. Fong,” Dan says. “I liked Dr. Fong’s confidence, his demeanor, his desire to ‘go for the cure.’”
(Continued on page 2)
A Second Opinion Becomes a Second Chance
You helped Dan hold onto Hope — literally!
(Continued from page 1)
Dr. Fong’s difference
Dan transferred his care to City of Hope, where a multidisciplinary team developed a coordinated treatment plan. In May 2021, Dan underwent an extensive eight-hour surgery at City of Hope’s Los Angeles campus. Dr. Fong removed multiple tumors from Dan’s liver, while another surgeon completed the reversal of Dan’s ileostomy.
The complex surgery was risky — but successful.
But because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dan’s wife, Jessica, couldn’t stay with her husband in the hospital. After completing the surgery, Dr. Fong left the building, went out to the parking lot, found Jessica and let her know that Dan was doing fine.
“That,” says Dan, “speaks volumes about who Dr. Fong is, not just as a surgeon but as a man. He is a remarkable human being.”
Making hope a reality — literally!
Recovery was not easy. Dan faced complications and weeks of healing, supported every step of the way by Jessica and his care team. Slowly, he regained his strength.
Then came a moment that made everything even more meaningful: the birth of his beautiful daughter, Evelyn Hope. Dan is forever grateful to the doctor he credits with making it all possible.
“The only reason Evelyn is on this earth is because of you,” Dan told Dr. Fong. “You saved my life.”
Today, Dan is thriving, embracing fatherhood and cherishing every moment with his family. Because of you, many more patients like Dan receive treatment and care that truly give them a second chance at life. Thank you for giving to City of Hope!
BREAKTHROUGH! Diabetes Research Win
Thanks to you, Jodi is insulin-free
For 30 years, Jodi Cruz lived with relentless and unpredictable blood sugar swings, multiple daily insulin injections and the fear of dangerous glucose highs and lows. She looked everywhere for answers, signing up for a variety of experimental studies ... all without success.
“Diabetes is so hard on your body,” Jodi says. “I wanted to make sure I would be there for my grandchildren.”
Amazingly, Jodi’s life changed through an innovative approach developed right here at City of Hope: a breakthrough in islet cell transplantation research that significantly improves outcomes for people with type 1 diabetes.
Traditional islet transplants, which involve infusing insulin-producing cells from a donor pancreas into a patient’s liver, can stabilize blood sugar and reduce severe hypoglycemia. However, these procedures often require cells from multiple donors to achieve insulin independence — and
even then, outcomes vary widely.
City of Hope’s Islet Cell Transplantation Program, led by Fouad R. Kandeel, M.D., Ph.D., took a bold step forward. Drawing on decades of research, Dr. Kandeel hypothesized that adding a naturally occurring hormone called gastrin — known to
Dr. Fouad R. Kandeel, M.D., Ph.D.
support the development of insulin-producing beta cells during fetal development — could dramatically boost the success of a single-donor transplant.
On July 7, 2019, Jodi became the first patient in the world to receive this gastrin-enhanced islet transplant. The results exceeded even the team’s most optimistic projections.
Instead of requiring cells from multiple donors, Jodi’s transplant thrived with just one. Her new islet cells allowed her to come off insulin entirely after just 11 days, far sooner than typical transplant timelines. For the first time in decades, her blood sugar levels stabilized — and she no longer lived in the shadow of severe highs or dangerous lows.
This achievement represents a major research breakthrough in the field of diabetes treatment. It suggests a future where insulin independence — once a distant hope — could become a realistic outcome for more people living with type 1 diabetes.
None of this would be possible without your generosity, which makes research advancements like this one a reality. Your support accelerates this vital research. With every gift, you help City of Hope push the boundaries of what’s possible — moving us closer to transformative treatments and, ultimately, a cure for type 1 diabetes.
Thank you for standing with us as we continue this life-changing work!
A Proud Legacy, A Bright Future
Your diabetes research impact throughout the years
With your generosity, we’re working to make life-threatening diseases like type 1 diabetes into a thing of the past. Together, we are turning science into cures!
• 1978: A lifesaving legacy begins. City of Hope Drs. Arthur Riggs and Keiichi Itakura helped engineer the technology behind synthetic human insulin, establishing the global standard of care still used today and saving countless lives.
• 2017: Accelerating the path to a cure. City of Hope’s partnership with the Wanek Family Project has driven major advances in diabetes research over the past nine years, bringing us closer to ending this disease forever.
• 2025: Life-changing islet transplantation improvements. Early clinical trial results show that adding an investigational hormone (gastrin-17) to a single islet cell transplant improved blood sugar control and reduced the need for insulin, with some participants (like Jodi!) achieving insulin independence.
Closing the Cancer Care Gap
7 facts about minority cancer risk — and what you’re doing to help!
At City of Hope, we’re on a mission to address gaps in care and improve health outcomes for all the communities we serve. With your support, we’re advancing care and reshaping the future of health by driving meaningful access and delivering better outcomes for all.
Here are 7 important facts to know about cancer risk in minority populations:
• Cancer is the leading cause of death among Asian Americans, the only racial/ethnic group in the United States for which this is the case.
• Despite cancer’s impact on Asian Americans, the community is screened for cervical, breast and colorectal cancers at lower rates compared with Americans overall.
• Black women in Orange County are experiencing an increasing trend in late-stage breast cancer diagnosis.
• Black women have nearly a threefold increased risk of triple-negative breast cancer, an aggressive subtype of the disease.
• Black men in the United States have a 1.5 times greater chance of developing prostate cancer than white men, and they are up to 2.5 times more likely to die from the disease than any other racial/ethnic group.
• Even though most guidelines acknowledge that Black men should be screened more intensively
than White men for prostate cancer, the trend is that Black men are screened at similar or lower rates.
• Hispanic women receive breast screenings at lower rates and represent nearly one-third of women ages 40 and over who have never had a mammogram.
Making cancer care equitable for all is crucial to changing these facts for the better. And understanding diversity moves equity forward.
“Every person with cancer or at risk of cancer deserves access to the right care at the right time, offered in a way that honors
the cultural aspects of who they are.”
— Danny Nguyen, M.D.,
Medical Oncologist and Hematologist, City of Hope Orange County
Since our founding, health equity has been essential to City of Hope’s mission — and because of compassionate supporters like you, we can deliver on our promise to end cancer and diabetes for everyone. Thank you for helping to champion this cause so that we can send more patients home to their loved ones, cancer free.
Make Hope a Reality All Year Long With Monthly Giving
At City of Hope, our work never stops. That’s why we’ve created Citizens of Hope: a special group of committed partners like you who provide reliable, monthly support to save more lives.
As a Citizen of Hope, you’ll do the following every month:
• Give on your terms. You can become a Citizen of Hope for as little as $10 a month. Your credit card will automatically be charged every month for the amount you choose, and you can cancel at any time.
• See the difference you make. When you join Citizens of Hope, you will receive a quarterly newsletter and exclusive updates on advances your support makes possible.
• Make hope a reality. Your reliable, monthly support allows our patients and their families to depend on us to turn hope into more tomorrows.
Sign up for monthly giving today by visiting cityofhope.org/citizens-of-hope.
ABOUT OUR SPONSORS
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