Metastasized Melanoma
Richard “Garret” Demarest is a two-time IRONMAN® competitor, half-marathoner and former educator with a wealth of experience in the health industry.
A U.S. Navy assistant navigator (lieutenant junior grade) who spent six months in Vietnam, Demarest was once tasked by a Midwestern hospital administrator with establishing what would become one of the first community-based wellness programs in the nation. He later spent many years as a leadership training consultant.
Now, ahead of his 85th birthday, the Palm Springs resident remains active. He swims regularly, enjoys theater, concerts and films, and is a cat and cat show enthusiast, a hobby he shares with partner, Tim Murphy.
These days, Demarest’s schedule includes immunotherapy treatments at Eisenhower Lucy Curci Cancer Center, where he is being treated for Stage 4 melanoma. Melanoma is skin cancer, which, in Demarest’s case, had metastasized (spread from its originating location to other places in the body).
Demarest’s health journey took a detour about three years ago when he experienced heart-related issues. His primary care physician referred him to Mehul Patel, MD, an Eisenhower Health specialist Board Certified in Pulmonary Disease and Critical Care Medicine. A scan revealed a spot on Demarest’s lungs.
“Dr. Patel wanted scans every three months to track this 1-millimeter spot,” Demarest writes in a personal journal he has since shared with friends and others. “Six months later, it had grown to 3 millimeters, but was still not large enough nor growing fast enough for us to be concerned.”
At the time, “I had been in good shape, recently lost about 30 pounds, was swimming regularly, riding my bike occasionally and for an 82-year-old, was doing well,” Demarest writes.
But in mid-August 2024, while visiting Murphy’s family in the Northeast, Demarest developed what he describes as “a strange deep pain in the right side of my ribcage.”
Upon returning home, he sought treatment at Eisenhower Urgent Care at Sunrise in Palm Springs. Demarest credits an alert radiologist who reviewed a scan taken at the time, as well as his medical records, for setting things in motion. Dr. Patel was notified and Demarest quickly was called in for an appointment.
The spot had grown and cancer was suspected. More tests were ordered.
Meanwhile, Demarest was referred by Dr. Patel to Delshad Ahmad, MD, a Board Certified Hematologist and Medical Oncologist at Eisenhower Lucy Curci Cancer Center.
The news was sobering. Demarest was diagnosed with Stage 4 melanoma, the most advanced form of cancer.
“When I first went in, my first exposure to the [Cancer] Center was Dr. Ahmad’s office,” Demarest says. There, Demarest and Murphy met Spencer Goss, NP, with whom they made an immediate connection.
“He was so reassuring and comforting. At the same time, I had the attitude that this was [like] a bad cold ... he bought into that. I needed somebody to be positive with me. I wanted someone who believed as I did - that I would get rid of this. That’s been my attitude all the way through.”
At the Cancer Center, treatment decisions take into account not only the diagnosis, but each patient’s overall health, goals and individual circumstances.
Cancer treatment is “an overwhelming journey for anyone to go through,” says Dr. Ahmad. “I think the main thing is to look at the patient as a whole person, not as a person who has cancer.”
The decision was made to treat Demarest with immunotherapy designed to help the immune system fight cancer cells.
But that was only one piece of the puzzle. “We collaborate on medical issues with colleagues in other specialties to make it as easy as possible for the patient,” Dr. Ahmad explains, “to be focused on all aspects of their worries, their pains. Every detail in their life.”
“We have excellent nurses supporting the patients,” Dr. Ahmad continues. “We have social workers and other resources to support patients physically and mentally.”
Demarest’s recent PET scans - the last one in July - have been clear of cancer. The scans now are scheduled every six months instead of every three. Because Demarest’s cancer had metastasized, he doesn’t consider himself cancer-free and expects to continue infusions “for the rest of my life hoping that it will not return.”
Demarest remains an ebullient, positive thinker. Titled “Exit: Stage 4!,” his journal helped him process his experience. Along the way, he says, it has become a helpful tool for others in his circle and beyond who find themselves facing cancer.
Demarest is grateful to the many people involved in his treatment, including the radiologist whose sharp eyes helped set him on the path to the Eisenhower Lucy Curci Cancer Center. He credits Dr. Patel, who “had done all the extra work before he even saw me. The tests, biopsy, referral were all ready.”
Demarest also credits the nurses staffing the infusion center. “Every visit provided understanding, optimism and encouragement,” he writes. “I found the visits comforting. Meeting others going through more serious interventions than mine gave me a chance to offer my support.”
As for Dr. Ahmad, Demarest is thankful for “his access to current drugs used to treat cancer, the science and knowledge behind that, and his ability to use those tools effectively.”
For more information about Eisenhower Health cancer services, call 760.674.3602 or visit EisenhowerHealth.org/Cancer.
