Inspire 2018 SPRING

Wilcox: The Greenbaums Reach Their Goal

“We were absolutely overwhelmed by the giving,” Ken Greenbaum said. In just three months, his family's challenge raised $350,000 for Wilcox Medical Center. The movement began when Ken and his wife, Betsy, donated $60,000 to Wilcox for their 60th wedding anniversary, then challenged others to give as well.

Soon family, friends and neighbors along with community members were adding gifts of their own in support of cancer care. Donations ranged from $10 to nearly $97,000. Ken told another couple who gave a rather large gift, “Your names should be recognized more than ours. They said ‘No, you started it and got us thinking about it.”

Conrad Murashige doesn’t know the Greenbaums but after learning about the challenge, his company was inspired to make a donation of $15,000. Conrad is the president of Shioi Construction which has been in business on Kauai since 1969. His company has not only worked on projects for Wilcox, many of Shioi's 150 employees depend on the center for their health services. “We have so many employees who go to the hospital, there’s always someone who recently got treated there,” Conrad said. “Our community is so fortunate that Wilcox provides for continued improvement of equipment, like the blood product irradiator.”

The first blood product irradiator on Kauai was provided by the Greenbaum Community Challenge. “They saw the need and it was so wonderful to see the donors come together, it went beyond expectations,” Dr. Jeffrey Cronk said. As director of Oncology Services at Wilcox, he understands the instant impact of having irradiated blood products, like red blood cells and platelets, readily available. “Now if we have someone who needs an irradiated blood product because they are bleeding or need emergency surgery, all we do is put the blood in the blood product irradiator and in minutes the blood is ready to transfuse,” Dr. Cronk said. In the past, it could take hours, or even a day, to fly the treated blood from Oahu to Kauai.

The reason irradiated blood product are so critical is that it protects individuals with significantly compromised immune systems, including chemotherapy patients and transplant candidates. White blood cells from the donor can attack the systems of people receiving the blood, causing multi-organ failure in those that develop Transfusion-associated graft-versus-host disease. Unfortunately up to 90 percent of these individuals will die of this complication. Irradiation removes the white blood cells. Wilcox needs anywhere from 7 to 21 units of irradiated blood product every month for an increasing number of patients, whether it’s Kauai residents or those who frequently vacation to the island. “We care for a number of patients from Stanford, U.C.S.F and across the Mid-West who want to continue their treatment with us when they are on Kauai,” Dr. Cronk said. Wilcox served 5,425 infusion patients—which includes injections, infusion, transfusions and treatments—in 2017 and nearly half of them were undergoing chemotherapy.

The blood product irradiator is a significant advancement in Wilcox’s plans to provide a comprehensive cancer care program and is a step forward to the goal of a comprehensive cancer center. “The ultimate goal would be to make the journey seamless, from the diagnosis of cancer to treatment of cancer and follow up of cancer,” Dr. Cronk said. Complementary therapies could expand care including nutritional support, art and music therapy, acupuncture, patient education resources like a research library or medical expert speakers and opportunities for clinical trial enrollment. Wilcox has already proven to deliver high-quality care to its cancer patients as an accredited program by the American College of Surgeons and the Commission on Cancer. “It takes a lot of work to get to that level and meet multiple accreditation standards, then prove you are continuing to meet them each year,” Dr. Cronk said.

The Greenbaums agree, they want to see cancer care on Kauai be “self-sustaining.” “If we can just help those with cancer stay closer to home instead of being transported away, it saves time, saves money and saves emotional grief and hardship on a family in crisis,” Ken said.

While their family and friends have helped the cause, Ken and Betsy are already thinking about what good their 61^st wedding anniversary might inspire. A nice, simple dinner for two is definitely part of their plans in 2018, but Ken says they are also considering leading another small fundraising effort for Wilcox. “I know the hospital has a huge wish list and maybe we can fulfill a small part of it,” he said. The Greenbaums’ marital bliss certainly touches many lives.