On Kevin Leago’s July CT scan, his torso looks like it has been riddled with birdshot. Dark splotches speckle his liver, his pancreas, his spine, marking where his neuroendocrine cancer has spread.
The pain in his bones has left the 38-year-old Houston Fire Department senior captain unable to work since the end of May. Within 30 days, he will exhaust all his sick and vacation time, leaving him with no income.
His doctors say his best shot at survival is a new treatment that is not offered at the hospital covered by Leago’s city health insurance.
Workers compensation benefits would provide Leago a paycheck while he is ill and allow him to transfer to any hospital that accepts him, but the city of Houston denied his claim.