Alese Kristine Coco – (b. March 10, 1984 – d. May 7, 2007) American woman who became face and voice of Hodgkin’s lymphoma was a strong advocate for research and clinical trials. She was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s in 2001 at the age of 17.
Contents |
Alese Coco, a devout Christian, was born in Torrance, California and was the first child to Kathleen Coco (b. 1960- ), also born in Torrance, California. Her father, Paul Coco (b. 1961- ) was born in Los Angeles, California and is employed by Honeywell International.[1] Coco’s siblings include one sister, Shallyn (b. 1986- ) and one brother, Mark (b. 1995- ) who is named after his uncle, Mark J. Coco (b.1959 – d.1996) acclaimed astronomer and astrophotography.[2]
Coco was raised in Rolling Hills Estates, California where she was enrolled in public school and attended a local church until 1994. Her family moved to Redondo Beach, California in 1995 where she attended public schools and became a parishioner of Journey of Faith church in Manhattan Beach. In 1997, she attended a private academy for home-schooled students. Coco enrolled in Redondo Union High School in 1999 as a junior and graduated in the top ten percent of her class in June 2002.[3]
Coco was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma on November 16, 2001 and was treated for six months with the customary Hodgkin’s Lymphoma chemotherapy regimen, ABVD. In September 2002, she relapsed four months after completing her initial treatment and underwent an Autologous Stem cell transplantation (SCT) at UCLA in Westwood, California in December 2002. She went through 18 rounds of radiation therapy beginning in March 2003.[4]
Coco remained cancer free for two years after her SCT and experienced a third recurrence on November 18, 2004 at the age of 20. In January 2005, Coco moved to Madison, New Jersey where she lived in housing provided by Honeywell and was treated at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City by lymphoma researcher Dr. Owen O’Connor.[5] [1].[6]
In May 2006, Coco moved back to California and was treated at City of Hope in Duarte. The plan was for her to be treated at home in Southern California with the understanding that City of Hope oncologists would follow Dr. O’Connor’s treatment plan. In March 2007, during a routine surgery to install a Hickman catheter, a City of Hope surgeon made a serious surgical error causing a hemothorax. Coco was in ICU for eleven days, nine of which were spent on a ventilator. She survived the tragedy, but never recovered. After her release from City of Hope, Coco immediately sought treatment at UCLA Medical Center. Five days after being released from City of Hope, she was admitted to UCLA with an infection where she remained until her death 49 days later on May 7, 2007. According to sources close to her family, the decision to have her treated at City of Hope was one they’ve always regretted.[7]
According to the California death certificate, Alese Coco died at UCLA on May 7, 2007 at 1:20 pm from respiratory failure, Aspergillus pneumonia and Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
July 2007 - The groundwork for the Alese Coco – Fight 2 Win Foundation began. Based in New York, the national campaign bearing her name raises money to fund research grants and raise awareness for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Some of the countries most influential people in the medical, legal and business leaders reside on the Board of Directors. In February 2008, the foundation became a registered non-profit corporation.[8]
2009 – New York University Cancer Institute in New York City (Midtown Manhattan) will open and dedicate the Alese Coco Hodgkin’s Laboratory. The first and only laboratory in the country dedicated full time to finding a cure for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Formal dedication is scheduled in April 2010.
Alese Coco is referenced on hundreds of websites, chat rooms, and Hodgkin’s Lymphoma forums around the world in over a dozen languages.
Coco’s first name remains the highest rated Google search under the heading "Alese".
"It has been said that ‘you can never be too rich, too thin or too pretty.’ Well, I think, you can never have too much faith, too much hope or smile enough."
"Follow your dreams and pursue them with unwavering passion." [9]
"No matter what adversity you face in life, you Fight 2 Win, period."