Benefit Concert Saturday for Warsaw Man with Hodgkin's Lymphoma
Posted
Jennifer Peryam-jperyam@timesuniononline.com
Warsaw resident Ben Bruce is 32 years old and has been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Ben was diagnosed with the disease at Indiana University Medical Center in Indianapolis at the beginning of June.
Hodgkin's lymphoma is characterized by the orderly spread of disease from one lymph node group to another.
A benefit concert will be Saturday from 7 to 8 p.m. at Community of Hope Church, 208 W. Jackson St., Columbia City.
The concert is being organized by Ben’s friends, Thomas and Bethany Hall, Warsaw.
Thomas, Warsaw Wesleyan Church director of worship, will sing temporary Christian and gospel music and play the piano during the concert.
A love offering will be taken to help with Ben’s medical expenses.
An online fundraiser was organized to help with medical expenses and ended Tuesday. A total of $10,000 was raised.
Ben was been employed at Biomet since December, and has a daughter, Raya, 2. He is married to Jen, who is a kindergarten teacher at Pierceton Elementary School.
Ben has not been able to work since April 18 due to complications from the disease.
In April, he was diagnosed with meningitis, an inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord. He also was diagnosed with encephalitis, an acute inflammation of the brain.
He was having hallucinations from the pressure to his brain, and was having headaches every day for a month.
He was at Parkview Hospital for four weeks, but doctors could not say why the meningitis was not going away.
He underwent rehabilitation to learn how to walk again, but still had double vision, daily hallucinations and headaches.
He also had problems walking straight.
After four weeks at Parkview, magnetic resonance imaging tests were done, as well as CAT scans and a spinal tap.
He was transferred to Indiana University Medical Center in Indianapolis when in June he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
A full body scan and biopsy was done when a lymph node sample was taken. The full body scan detected the Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
He was given steroids that caused his headaches and hallucinations to stop.
He has undergone two chemotherapy treatments, and will continue to receive treatments every other week until November.
The Bruces have health insurance, but Ben previously did construction work on the side to help pay for expenses, but with the disease is not able to do so.
He hopes to return to work at Biomet by November, where he has worked third shift.
When he returns to work depends on how his body reacts to the chemotherapy.
He said his friends, family and church have been supportive in this challenging time.
For more information, visit the facebook page BenBruceBenefit or contact BenBruceBenefit@gmail.com for questions.
