Weather Alert: Fox Chase remains open, though some appointments or services may be adjusted. Patients will be contacted directly if their visit is affected. Please check Foxchase.org for updates and monitor myTempleHealth for changes to scheduled appointments.
James Hess: Beating the Odds and Bladder Cancer
“The statistics for small cell bladder cancer weren’t encouraging, but here I am, more than 10 years later. I survived. I beat the odds.”‐James Hess
I have always lived a steady and hardworking life. I also made it my mission to dedicate time to helping others, including supporting mission work in El Salvador with my wife Dina. I ran my family business for 52 years and rarely missed a day of work. I was someone who rarely became ill. So, when I noticed blood in my urine in 2015 it was unexpected and deeply unsettling. That moment marked the beginning of my bladder cancer journey.
A Mission That Became a Calling
However, it’s not just the story of my illness that I want to share, but the purpose that carried me through it.
More than 20 years ago, Dina and I felt called to help people in El Salvador. We met through a church mission in the Bronx, and together we built a ministry focused on installing clean water wells in remote villages. Many communities lacked reliable access to safe drinking water. Seeing how a single well helped children stay healthy and families thrive changed our lives forever.
Since then, we’ve brought clean, fresh water to 62 communities across El Salvador. Even while battling cancer, even through chemotherapy, surgery, and recovery, that mission anchored me. It gave me something bigger than myself to fight for.
Dina passed away three years ago after 49 years of marriage. Losing her was the hardest thing I’ve ever faced. But I knew I had to keep going. Our work in El Salvador was her passion too, and I’ve continued the mission in her honor. Every new well feels like a tribute to her and a gift to the people we’ve come to love.
Finding the Right Care
I was able to continue that work thanks to those who were willing to help me in my time of need. A close friend who had battled cancer told me that if I ever faced something serious, Fox Chase Cancer Center was the place to go. I took his advice, and I’m grateful every day that I did.
After my urologist diagnosed me with bladder cancer in 2015, he helped me get an appointment with Dr. Alexander Kutikov, a urologic oncologist and Chair of the Department of Urology at Fox Chase. From the first meeting, Dr. Kutikov’s kindness and calm confidence put me at ease. He explained everything in detail and even took time on a Saturday morning to talk through my options.
Tests showed that my tumor was invasive and that my bladder couldn’t be saved. At first, it felt devastating, but I learned to adapt. Life goes on.
Treatment and a Second Chance
I was found to have small cell bladder cancer, an extremely rare and aggressive disease that makes up only about 0.3% of bladder cancers. I underwent three rounds of very intense chemotherapy coordinated by the team at Fox Chase but done at a hospital near my home. Then, on July 31, 2015, Dr. Kutikov removed my bladder and created an ileal stoma, thus allowing me to use a urostomy pouch to collect urine. The compassionate, organized, and deeply human care I received at Fox Chase made all the difference.
The statistics for small cell bladder cancer weren’t encouraging, but here I am, more than 10 years later. I survived. I beat the odds.
My journey still didn’t end there. Because the tumor had blocked my ureters, the tubes that move urine from the kidneys to the bladder, my kidneys were permanently damaged. This eventually led to kidney failure. After nine years of managing my kidney function, I received a kidney transplant in 2023. Today, my kidney is strong, and so am I.
Living With Purpose
These days, I feel great. I’ve since retired from my family business and spend my time woodworking, hiking, enjoying the mountains, and being with my five grandchildren. But my heart is always with the communities in El Salvador that have become like family.
Surviving cancer didn’t just give me more time, it gave me clarity. Life is precious, and service is what gives it meaning. I try to do something kind every day, because kindness is the one thing that always multiplies.
For anyone facing a cancer diagnosis, I offer this simple advice: Go to Fox Chase Cancer Center. The care is exceptional, and it saved my life. If someone I love ever needed cancer treatment, I wouldn’t let them go anywhere else.
I’m living proof that there is hope, that you can beat the odds, and that a second chance at life is best spent lifting others up.
Learn more about treatment for bladder cancer at Fox Chase Cancer Center.