John Warner, 57, renal cell carcinoma, Boston and Vero Beach, FL, with Toni Choueiri, MD, Director Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology, Dana-Farber

WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon

Two miles there and two miles back. That’s the distance John Warner would walk from his Back Bay home to Dana-Farber to keep himself in shape while in treatment for renal cell carcinoma, or kidney cancer. John was diagnosed in the winter of 2021. John experienced blood in his urine which led to a scan at his physical. That scan revealed a tumor between one of his kidneys and ureters that was promptly removed. He consulted several top medical centers around the country before ultimately undergoing a chemotherapy plan with Dana-Farber. He was cancer-free after six months, until it returned three months later. John pivoted to immunotherapy treatment under the care of Dr. Toni Choueiri for several months before joining a chemotherapy clinical therapy exclusive to Dana-Farber patients.

John stayed on the trial for 16 months and just came off it a few months ago. He’s continued to work as a Senior Partner at McKinsey and Company throughout his treatment, while also doing activities he loves like playing golf and going on long walks. Last year, he walked in the annual Jimmy-Fund Walk and hopes to ride in the Pan-Mass Challenge in 2025 once his neuropathy goes away.

John has developed a personal, and somewhat joking, connection with Dr. Choueiri, whom he knows is always just a phone call away if he needs him. Plus, they are both Browns fans from Cleveland.