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Heath Berkey was 15 years old when his high school wrestling coach in western Pennsylvania announced that he was leaving his position to join the Pennsylvania state police. Heath instantly became intrigued, and soon after he decided he wanted to follow in his coach’s footsteps. “After that, everything I did was aimed at getting to where I am today,” says Heath who became a Maryland state trooper in August of 2003.

Then, seemingly out of the blue, Heath had an unexpected setback in July 2006. Tests confirmed that he had a rare and hard to treat form of adult leukemia called biphenotypic acute leukemia. Only a small percentage of leukemias are biphenotypic, meaning they have characteristics of both myeloid and lymphoid leukemias.

To treat his cancer, Heath turned to the best Maryland had to offer – John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. It was there he learned that his greatest chance for a cure was a blood or marrow transplant (BMT). But the search for a suitable marrow donor proved more than difficult. “They couldn’t find a donor match that was close enough for them to want to take a chance on Heath’s body rejecting the transplant,” recalls Heath’s dad, Bill Berkey. 

That’s when his doctors suggested that Heath’s best hope was an umbilical cord blood (UCB) transplant. “They told us that the best place for him to go for that was the University of Minnesota Medical Center, Fairview” Bill recalls. “So that’s where we went.”

Following three days of intensive chemotherapy and four days of radiation in February 2007, Heath received a transplant of new stem cells from the blood of two umbilical cord units. For Heath – like other patients who have a difficult time finding a donor marrow match – a double cord transplant gave him a chance for a cure that he might never have had otherwise. ( Click on this link to learn more about the benefits and advantages of UCB transplant. )

Heath’s new stem cells were 100 percent engrafted only 21 days after his transplant, and getting back to work was his top priority. “From the very start of my treatment, I pretty much told people ‘I’m going to beat this. I’m going back to work,’” Heath says. “When my treatment was done, I kept asking, ‘When can I go back to work?’”

That day came in July of 2007 when he returned to work part time. He returned full time in August – roughly 13 months after he was first diagnosed with leukemia. In October, he received the honor of being named Trooper of the Month. Reaching that milestone is largely due to the support that his parents, Bill and Cathy, and his friends gave him throughout his ordeal with cancer, Heath says.

“My parents were and still are such an inspiration to me,” says Heath. “Without my parents and friends helping me and pushing me, I don’t know that I would be here today. They gave up so much to be with me while I was sick.”

Today, Heath has his weight back, is exercising in the gym, and is training for the Marine Corps Marathon in Arlington, Virginia in October 2010. He is also training to become a state police paramedic. With his Emergency Medical Technician certification under his belt, he is on track to obtain his paramedic certification in May 2011. At that time Heath hopes to transfer to the Maryland State Police aviation hanger to work as a helicopter paramedic. Although he has already flown in the helicopter a few times to help transport patients to the hospital, his new role would allow him to pilot the aircraft as well as provide medical care to the patients. 

“The patients that we fly wouldn’t otherwise receive the care they need within the time frame they need it,” Heath explains. Getting patients to the hospital within the “golden hour” after they are injured greatly increases their chances of survival, he adds.

As a cancer survivor, Heath knows better than many people how important a second chance at life can be. In fact, it was his own journey through leukemia and BMT that inspired him to become a paramedic for the Maryland State Police, he says.

“When I was sick, strangers helped me,” says Heath of his care providers and his cord blood donor. “Although you hope [a serious traffic accident] doesn’t happen for people, unfortunately it will at some point. And several minutes could be a big deal in caring for them and getting them to the hospital. If I can help, I want to be able to do that.”