Letter From ‘Kuya Eddie’

by ALEX P. VIDAL

Eddie Alinea is a model father.

As president of the Sports Communicators Organization of the Philippines (SCOOP), a fraternity of sportswriter in the Philippines, I have worked with him in various local and international events.

I first met Eddie during the 1991 Palarong Pambansa in Iloilo where he covered the event as sports editor of the Manila Standard. He teamed up with Iloilo correspondent Gina Hablero and the all-around journalist Limuel Celebria. 

Nineteen years later in November 2010, we met again in Dallas, Texas during the coverage of the Pacquiao-Margarito fight. Again in May 2011, we joined forces in the coverage of the Pacquiao-Mosley tussle in Las Vegas, Nevada. To save space, I will write a separate story about our rendezvous and how I enjoyed his company each time I was with this magnificent father who is willing to offer his life for his beloved son.

LETTER

Here’s Kuya Eddie’s letter he recently sent to me via e-mail: 

“First of all, me and my family would, again, like to extend our deep appreciation to you and all who have responded to our call for prayers and support for my son Wendell Rupert, who has been suffering from Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia the past four years.

“We feel we owe it to you and our friends to apprise you of his current status wince he suffered a relapse about two months ago. So please read on…

“Wendell had a very smooth consolidation therapy at Makati Medical Center. This was a 25-day Arsenic Trioxide infusion for his relapsed Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia. Due to his positive response to his treatment, he managed to be an out-patient for the whole course of his treatment. This helped cut our expenses into half since being an in-patient costs more than P10,000 a day for the hospital room and lab tests alone. This excludes the doctor’s fees and the Arsenic Trioxide which we had to import from India since it’s not available here in the Philippines.

“On July 8, 2011, Wendell underwent another Bone Marrow Aspiration. The result of his biopsy will determine whether he’ll be a candidate for an autologous transplant (his own bone marrow transplanted back at him). Since he doesn’t match with his sisters, this will be the best option for him. That’s why we’re really praying hard for his complete molecular remission.

“While waiting for his test results which can go on for a month, Wendell will have to go through another 25-day cycle of Arsenic Trioxide. This will be his 3rd cycle which will start on July 17.

“We graciously thank God for all the wonderful blessings He’s been pouring us. We thank God for all kind-hearted people He’s been sending our way to help us. We wouldn’t have gone this far without the spiritual, moral and financial support of all the caring and generous people around us. Our family will forever be grateful. 

“Please continue praying for my son as he gets ready for his 3rd cycle of therapy. Any form of support is highly needed and would be greatly appreciated. God bless! In Christ, Eddie G. Alinea”. (Editor’s Note: This article was written in July 2011. We don’t know what happened to Wendell. Is he surviving?)  /MP