Luis Alvarez, a former New York City Police detective who was one of the first responders on 9/11, has died after a battle with colon cancer. Alvarez became a symbol of 9/11 first responder's struggle to secure extended federal funding when he testified before Congress earlier this month alongside comedian Jon Stewart.
Alvarez had undergone 69 rounds of chemotherapy before his doctors told him there was nothing more they could do one day after his emotional testimony.
“That’s my ultimate goal, legacy, is to have this bill passed so first responders have the coverage they need,” he said. Before his death, Alvarez said he was “at peace” with everything, because he could still “work from my bedside, I can still put the word out.”
The extreme weight loss and muscle tissue atrophy is, visually, the most striking aspect of cancer illness/treatment.
The stronger and healthier a person was prior to the wasting effect, the more severe the appearance can be. The definition of his cheekbones displays how gaunt the rest of his body must have been. This man was physically powerful and capable and his body was able to sustain 69 rounds of chemo, let alone his mental consistution to work at ground zero.
Thank you for sharing this comparative photo, it shows a whole human’s war in one glance.
I live and work in NYC and I often get patients with “9/11 responder” as clinical history. It’s wild how an event 18 years ago is still directly affecting people.
Sumit316 on June 29th, 2019 at 15:56 UTC »
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R.I.P
ZigZagSigSag on June 29th, 2019 at 18:49 UTC »
The extreme weight loss and muscle tissue atrophy is, visually, the most striking aspect of cancer illness/treatment.
The stronger and healthier a person was prior to the wasting effect, the more severe the appearance can be. The definition of his cheekbones displays how gaunt the rest of his body must have been. This man was physically powerful and capable and his body was able to sustain 69 rounds of chemo, let alone his mental consistution to work at ground zero.
Thank you for sharing this comparative photo, it shows a whole human’s war in one glance.
Dannyprecise on June 29th, 2019 at 18:56 UTC »
I live and work in NYC and I often get patients with “9/11 responder” as clinical history. It’s wild how an event 18 years ago is still directly affecting people.