In August 2020, Louie Maldonado, a resident of Michigan City, went in for a colonoscopy after noticing he was starting to have stomach issues. It was then that it was determined he was indeed having problems, and Maldonado was diagnosed with stage four colorectal cancer.
“When they told me I had cancer, I was in a surreal state, like I was outside of my body observing this as somebody else who was dealing with this,” Maldonado said. “They told me it was stage four, and that's when it hit me the hardest. They say that it's not curable, but it's treatable.”
Maldonado got into the mindset that this is how his life is going to be. To keep him busy in the meantime, Maldonado kept working for his full-time job at Optum which is a division of UnitedHealth Group. He also kept Tiki-okie, a weekly karaoke session at Fiddlehead restaurant, on the side.
His husband helped him get into Northwestern Memorial Hospital in downtown Chicago to see the doctors there. At the appointment, he met with four doctors that he would be dealing with including a colorectal surgeon, a liver surgeon, a radiation oncologist, and a hematology oncologist.
“I was in for a whole treatment plan where I just had five days of intense radiation treatment, followed by six months of chemo and then surgery after that to remove the remaining tumors,” said Maldonado.
That first year was intense for Maldonado, and he is still fighting. Maldonado is not alone in his fight. His husband and others have been very supportive of him in his fight against cancer.
“My husband is my number one support,” said Maldonado. "Whenever I needed care or I was having a less-than-stellar day, he would always be there to get me through it. My manager and co-workers at work have also been really super supportive.”
He decided to open up and post about his journey on Facebook. Every time he had treatments or pre-surgery, Maldonado would document it. His husband and friends suggested options like therapy, and Maldonado chose to stay positive.
“I always feel like I should have a positive attitude about it,” said Maldonado. “The most important weapon you can have for fighting this is just being positive and knowing that you're going to get through this - that's all I can do for myself.”
Positivity seeps through who he is. Maldonado is more than just someone who is battling cancer. He hosts karaoke on the first Fridays of the month with Tiki-okie at Fiddlehead in Michigan City. He loves the tiki lifestyle and singing. He is also a fan of retro music.
“I don't want people to think of cancer as the first thing about me,” said Maldonado. “I've told friends this before that I want to come to a point where when I see you, the first question isn't ‘Oh, how are you feeling?’”
The battle is not over, but Maldonado is looking forward to the future and whatever comes. He is looking forward to going to Hawaii for the first time in September which will be his first real vacation since the cancer diagnosis.