By Ron Paglia
As one of the top soccer players in western Pennsylvania for more than 30 years, Lew DiBernardi was always prepared physically and mentally for any opponent.
Today, with his career long behind him, DiBernardi is facing the toughest challenge of his life — full recovery from mantle cell lymphoma, a cancer of the immune system. His experiences over the past year and a half have included surgery to remove tumors from his abdomen and a stem-cell transplant.
“We’re not out of the woods yet,” DiBernardi, 54, said at his father’s home in Dunlevy. “We still have a long way to go, but I’m determined to beat it. I’m blessed to be in the care of the best physicians and to be surrounded by a loving family and supportive friends.”
DiBernardi’s family includes his father, Dominick “Dom” DiBernardi and his sister, Rose Marie Govi of Yukon, who was the donor for the transplant.
“Rose saved my life and my father was my savior,” DiBernardi said as he glanced poignantly at them. “(Rose) didn’t hesitate about donating her cells and my father has been a pillar of strength as my caretaker, driving me to Pittsburgh for surgery, the transplant and other treatments and procedures. Friends have taken me when (his father) wasn’t available, and I’m grateful to them. But I don’t know what I’d do without Rose and my dad.”
DiBernardi’s ordeal began during a routine checkup by his family physician, Dr. Umberto A. DeRienzo, in Speers.
“They discovered two bumps on my left arm,” DiBernardi recalled of the visit in early 2007. “I felt them one night while watching TV but didn’t think much about it. We thought it might be some fatty tissue in my arm, nothing serious. But they wanted to check it out.”
Ensuing tests including an MRI led DiBernardi to Allegheny General Hospital, part of the West Penn Allegheny Health System, in Pittsburgh. A PET (Positron Emission Tomography) scan and biopsy revealed DiBernardi had non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which develops when a type of white blood cell, called a T cell or B cell, becomes abnormal.
According to the MedicinePlus Web site, the cell divides again and again, making more and more abnormal cells. These abnormal cells can spread to almost any other part of the body.
In oncology, a PET scan is the only modality that can accurately image many organs of the body with a single pass to provide determination of cancer. In addition, it provides information to determine whether a primary cancer has spread to other parts of the body.
“They found the cancer had spread to my neck, chest, abdomen, groin and bone marrow,” DiBernardi recalled. “I was already in stage 4 of the disease.”
DiBernardi then became a patient of Dr. Larisa Greenberg, a medical oncologist at Allegheny General, and a lengthy schedule of chemotherapy sessions began on April 9, 2007.
“Initially, I would go for seven straight days of chemotherapy and be at home for 10 days,” DiBernardi said. “Then we went for five days and back home for 10. It was a real grind, a test of endurance, strength and will.”
But DiBernardi fared “very well,” according to his father.
“He’s been a good patient through everything,” the elder DiBernardi, who is 85, said. “There were times when he was in great pain, but he’s a fighter … always has been … he’s been a real trooper. He’s my son and you do whatever you have to do for your children.”
DiBernardi’s white blood cell count dropped dramatically during the three months of chemotherapy, falling to an 0.1 level. His platelets were at 2,000, enormously below a normal reading of 130,000. And he developed a serious infection in his chest that resulted in a 10-day stay in the hospital.
His next stop was at the office of Dr. John Lister, chief, Division of Hematology/Oncology at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital, also part of the West Penn Allegheny Health System. He began seeing DiBernardi on an outpatient basis. A followup PET scan revealed all of the cancer that had spread throughout DiBernardi’s body was gone, except for two tumors in his abdomen.
“There was one attached to my stomach and another on my pancreas,” DiBernardi recalled.
Surgery to remove the tumors took place on Feb. 1. Three months later, DiBernardi received the “all clear” diagnosis; that is, the tumors were gone.
“But Dr. Lister said I needed the transplant because there was always a chance (cancer) would come back,” DiBernardi said.
Lister said DiBernardi underwent an allogeneic transplant in which stem cells come from a donor whose tissue “most closely matches the patient.”
“Lew was fortunate in that his sister was a perfect match,” Lister said. “A large number of patients don’t have compatible donors in their families. The options then become finding a donor through the National Marrow Donor Program or from umbilical cord blood drawn from newborn infants and stored for future use.”
Among the first hospitals in the nation to join the National Marrow Donor Program, West Penn Hospital is the only hospital in the Pittsburgh region with a blood and marrow transplant program approved by the Cancer and Leukemia Group B, a national clinical trial organization. The West Penn Cancer Institute offers both allogeneic and autologous (self-donated) transplantation of peripheral blood, bone marrow or cord blood.
Because his sister was “just what the doctor ordered,” DiBernardi said, he didn’t have to wait or search for a donor.
“I’ve talked with other patients at West Penn who have been trying to find a suitable donor for one, two and nearly three years,” he said. “I’m so grateful, and always will be, that Rose was a match and agreed to the transplant.”
“There was no question I would do it,” Rose Marie Govi, 59, said. “He’s my brother. I love him.”
Govi said the family was “beside ourselves” when they learned of DiBernardi’s plight.
“Ultimately, we knew I would be the donor,” she said. “My brother didn’t come right out and ask me, he couldn’t bring himself to ask. But I knew that was the only solution.”
Despite her willingness, there was a hitch for Govi, editorial assistant and ad representative for The Catholic Accent, a publication of the Diocese of Greensburg.
“(Transplant) was scheduled for June 4, but I had bronchitis in May and wasn’t fully recovered by that time,” Govi said. “Lew had already started his pre-transplant regimen and was ready. Dr. Lister ordered an MRI and CT scan for me because he didn’t want to take a chance on my condition. He decided to delay the transplant. I didn’t know what to think and I didn’t want to tell Lew because I thought he would be heartbroken. I started to panic. I thought, ‘What if I can’t do it?’ I couldn’t bear the thought of disappointing Lew.”
The worry was for naught. The transplantation began on June 12.
DiBernardi said Lister and his colleagues wanted to obtain some four million cells from his sister but the transfer didn’t go as planned.
“I had no (white) cells in me on that first day,” he recalled. “I had undergone an irradiation procedure.”
Total body irradiation (TBI) is a radiation therapy (or radiotherapy) technique used to prepare the body to receive a bone marrow (or stem cell) transplant.
Govi needed three days to provide a little more than half of the four million cells sought for her brother.
“It’s a very strenuous process that takes about four hours a day,” she said. “You are required to lie on your back, arms outstretched, with lines running out of both arms to transport the cells. You can’t move. Because I had undergone back surgery, it was virtually impossible for me to do that. Dr. Lister ordered a line with two leaders inserted into my groin so I could lie on my side and be more comfortable, but it was still very tedious.”
Doctors said the transplant would take only one day. But the extended process caused Govi to lose calcium in her body and she experienced numbness. On the second day, Govi’s electrolytes, which are needed to maintain bodily fluid function, “began to take a nosedive,” she said. And she still had not produced enough cells for her brother.
“That was on a Friday and (transplantations) don’t usually take place on Saturday,” Govi said. “We thought we would have to wait until Monday, but Lister decided to proceed the next day and we got 700,000 more (cells).”
The transplantation involved drawing cells from Govi and transferring them to her brother. Govi eventually returned to her home but her brother remained a patient at West Penn for 45 days.
“My dad stayed in an apartment provided by the hospital and I was able to go there, too,” DiBernardi said. “They had installed a catheter in the main artery of my neck and I developed an infection while staying at the apartment. So it was back to the hospital for another three weeks. I couldn’t eat and I lost my sense of smell. I lost about 28 pounds. My white blood cell count was down to nothing, zero. Now it’s up to a good level.”
A PET scan on Aug. 29 revealed the second tumor in DiBernardi’s abdomen had shrunk about 50 to 60 percent. He was, and continues to be, on myriad medications.
“I thought we might have to get a larger medicine cabinet at home,” DiBernardi, who lives next door to his father in Dunlevy, said with a smile. “I think I could drive blindfolded to Rite Aid.”
As part of his post-transplant treatment, DiBernardi also has gone to the Charles L. and Rose Sweeney Melenyzer Pavilion and Regional Cancer Center at Monongahela Valley Hospital.
DiBernardi had praise for Mon Valley Hospital and for his employer, First Federal Savings Bank of Monessen, for whom he has worked as a maintenance specialist at the main office and branch offices for nearly 22 years.
“I’ve been off work for about 18 months, but they have been very understanding and supportive,” he said.
DiBernardi admits “there are no guarantees” that he will be completely cleared of the cancer that continues to throttle a normal life.
Lister agrees.
“We never know about the future,” Lister said. “Each person is different in terms of recovery. In Lew’s case, it depends on how well his sister’s cells work, what impact they will have on the cancer.”
A physician for 30 years who administered the first bone-marrow transplant of his career in 1979, Lister said he has seen “tremendous changes” in his specialty, especially over the past five years.
“There are so many new agents and more sophisticated technology,” he said. “We have a better understanding (of the disease) and how to attack it. Our primary objective is to keep our patients alive for as long as we can.”
Lew DiBernardi embraces that approach with unbridled faith and the fighting disposition that has been the hallmark of his life.
“I’ve never been one to whine and say, ‘Why me?'” DiBernardi said. “Hey, sure I was shocked at first. But Dr. Greenberg settled me down and I came to understand what had to be done. Maybe God is testing me again. I’ve always felt that as long as you’re still in the game, you still have a chance (to win).”
– – –
Lew DiBernardi doesn’t see himself as an inspiration to anyone.
But to those who know, respect and love him, he was an inspiration long before he began an uphill battle with lymphoma that included a stem-cell transplant.
“If I can help others to understand cancer and what has to be done to overcome it, that’s fine, but I don’t look at myself as being inspiring,” DiBernardi said. “The doctors, nurses and others who have treated me are the real heroes, they save lives every day. My father and my sister are inspiring, the kind of people anyone would want to emulate.”
DiBernardi and his sister, Rose Marie Govi, are the children of Dom DiBernardi of Dunlevy and the late Clara Gallucci DiBernardi, who was 71 when she died June 6, 1994.
Dennis Laskey, a longtime friend and former soccer teammate, said Lew DiBernardi was “such a good all-around athlete.”
“He could play any sport but excelled in soccer the most because of his ability to score goals,” said Laskey, men’s varsity soccer coach at California University of Pennsylvania. “He had the knack of being in the right spot on the field and the technical ability to place the ball where he wanted to. His father always gave good instruction from his youth and high school soccer and (Lew) proved himself in the semi-pro leagues playing against very good defenders and goalkeepers.”
Laskey, whose involvement with soccer as a player and coach spans nearly 45 years, recalled that DiBernardi scored against a “very strong and skilled” German national team in a game at Charleroi High School stadium.
“His talents were appreciated by all soccer players and fans,” Laskey said.
Luke Paglia of Highland Park, Pittsburgh, one of the younger veteran players on the regional soccer front, offered similar thoughts.
“I’ll always remember Lew as a deadly striker with a nose for the goal from anywhere on the field,” said Paglia, 37, a Charleroi native. “I never had the opportunity to play with him, except in scrimmages in Dunlevy. I did learn a lot just from watching him, though — mostly patience. He had an amazing ability to find the right spot, get to it and wait for the ball, and the game, to come to him. I have applied that philosophy not just to soccer but to life.”
Paglia, who has been playing organized soccer for 32 years, said DiBernardi is “definitely one of the few athletes who originally inspired me and remains a strong influence on my life.”
Laskey said there was no question about the support and prayers DiBernardi is drawing.
“When one of your closest friends is stricken with something like this, you instantly rally around him to try and assist in any way you can,” Laskey said. “Lew has the determination and drive he displayed as an athlete to help him reach a different goal — life. He is facing a challenge none of us want to contend with and he has battled just as fiercely as he did as an athlete. He has been an inspiration to my team (at Cal U). He has attended many of our games over the years and they have followed his progress. Speaking for his friends, Lew, Rose Marie and Dom have been an inspiration to all of us.”
DiBernardi’s sister said support for her brother has extended beyond geographic boundaries.
“My brother was and still is, on countless prayer chains and novenas, not only throughout the Mon Valley but in Westmoreland County and beyond,” Govi said. “I prayed for him endlessly, along with my closest friends, acquaintances and co-workers who helped me maintain the fortitude to be strong for him.”
Like many others in Dunlevy, DiBernardi was born into a soccer family. His father was an outstanding player for the Redbirds during some of their most successful campaigns in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. He also was one of the area’s top 10-pin bowlers for many years.
“What do you think?” Lew DiBernardi smiled in response to a question about feeling the pressure of following in his father’s footsteps. “He was one of the best.”
Lew didn’t have the benefit of growing up in an era that provided organized youth leagues.
“We learned by playing against the older guys,” he recalled. “My first experiences were playing with Dennis (Laskey), Cal Montgomery, Jack Jacobs and (Ralph) Butch Rossi.”
A 1972 graduate of Charleroi Area High School, DiBernardi lettered four years with the Cougars, but he got his first taste of varsity action earlier.
“You had to be in ninth grade to play with the varsity, but I used to ride the bus with the team when I was in eighth grade and they would slip me into the game at times,” he recalled.
DiBernardi was an All-WPIAL selection in 1969, ’70 and ’71 and established a new single season scoring record in his senior year with 16 goals in 10 games. He went on to play at the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown for two years. He played in several western Pennsylvania leagues with the senior Dunlevy Redbirds and won scoring championships in 1978 and ’79. He played his final game at age 43 with the Elizabeth entry in the Pittsburgh Masters League, an Over-40 circuit.
He and neighbor Robin Rossi, also a 1972 CAHS graduate, were inducted into the Charleroi Area High School Soccer Hall of Fame in 1994.
DiBernardi’s sister and her husband, Gerald J. Govi, are the parents of three sons — Justin, Jared and Jordan. They also have a grandson, Colton Govi, 13, and a two-month-old granddaughter, Madysen Grace Govi. Rose Marie is firm in her belief that Madysen Grace’s presence in her life came through divine intervention.
“I’ve been surrounded by men in my family all my life,” she said. “I’ve always wanted a little girl and I think (Madysen) is God’s way of thanking me for what transpired between me and Lew. He blessed me for giving Lew life by bringing this beautiful baby girl into my life.”
Dom DiBernardi also is inspired by his son’s willingness and commitment to overcome the cancer that has ravaged him since early 2007.
“I’ve told people he had to go through hell before he got better,” Dom said with moist eyes. “I don’t know that I would have had the courage and strength he’s shown.”
He’s equally proud of his daughter, who was the donor for her brother’s transplant.
“Her spirit is so strong, she was determined to help (Lew) in the most important time of his life,” Dom said. “I’m blessed with two children any parent would want. I love them beyond words.”
Lew DiBernardi accepted his father’s praise with deep humility and loving proof of lessons learned at home.
“We take after our parents,” he said.
(c) 2008 Tribune-Review/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All rights Reserved.
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