The bonds didn't begin with cancer

Nestled in a comfortable black recliner in the IU Health Bedford Hospital Oncology and Infusion unit, Josh Leveque sips on a soda while watching his favorite shows and singing along to classic rock or Christmas music. Across from him is his regular nurse, Mitch Fields, RN, who checks for test results as the patient receives IV fluids with his mother, Kelly Leveque, by his side.

“We first met Mitch when Josh needed a blood draw for a new seizure medication, and he wouldn’t let the lab team do it up front,” says his mother. “I know we got referred back here because God wanted to prepare us, and Josh and Mitch hit it off right away.”

The team embraced the autistic 29-year-old, connecting with him and his mother every time they returned to the unit for blood work. Then, one day in June 2024, the young man came to his mom and said, “Burns.”

“This is a kid who had an appendix ready to rupture and needed emergency surgery because he never complains,” says Kelly. “So, we made an appointment with his nurse practitioner.”

He got a CT scan followed by a PET scan in Indianapolis. On July 10, they learned he had testicular cancer, which had spread, so he needed chemotherapy in addition to surgery.

Fortunately, they were able to have his chemotherapy done in Bedford with the team they both trust. From August to November, Josh and Kelly came to the hospital for treatments, which the mother says he always looked forward to.

The team sang songs with him, painted pictures on the Infusion door windows, brought him warm blankets, put up a banner for his birthday and generally embraced him as they focused on making this experience as positive as possible for him and his mother.

“The week before Thanksgiving was our last treatment, and he got his last white blood cell count on my birthday,” says his mother. “That was the best birthday gift ever, finishing that up.”

While Josh loved the celebration of cake, maracas and singing that came with ringing the bell for his last treatment, his mother didn’t feel real relief until the PET scans came back saying the treatment was a success.

Regular visits to the Bedford office have continued for testing, and those appointments are becoming less frequent as time goes on and his numbers continue to look good.

“I feel like the last six months, I’ve kind of just been on autopilot, but he’s the one who got us through it,” says Kelly as her son and Fields sing the 12 Days of Christmas in the background, their bond as strong as it’s been from the very beginning.