When Jeff Urso received word he was facing a serious health crisis, he sprang into action — not just for himself, but for children confronting similar battles.
Urso, of Knollwood, learned last month he had a form of leukemia and has since begun treatment. Rather than retreat into self-pity, he is channeling his diagnosis into a fundraising campaign set to benefit two medical centers known for treating children with cancer.
“I know both children and adults get it, but it has to be a lot scarier when you are 12 years old,” he said.
Urso is well known in the Lake Forest/Lake Bluff community. He owns several restaurants, co-hosts a podcast, and previously served on the Shields Township board. Yet his life changed on Feb. 16 when he was cleaning the oven at Duffer’s in Lake Forest, one of his restaurants, and began feeling intense abdominal pain.
Staff members urged him to seek medical attention at Northwestern Medicine Catherine Gratz Griffin Lake Forest Hospital. Doctors soon discovered he had an enlarged spleen. He was later diagnosed with hairy cell leukemia.
“It was totally out of the blue,” Urso recalled.
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Hairy cell leukemia is a rare type of blood cancer that grows slowly, according to Dr. Dean Tsarwhas, director of oncology at the hospital’s cancer center. (He is not Urso’s doctor.)
“When people have hairy cell leukemia, their bone marrow makes abnormal blood cells that grow out of control and can travel to the spleen, lymph nodes and other parts of the body,” Tsarwhas explained. “When the abnormal hairy cells grow, they can crowd out the healthy cells that normally live in the bone marrow and lead to low blood counts, or they can fill the spleen and lymph nodes, causing them to swell.”
Tsarwhas added some context for the name of this form of leukemia.
“The abnormal blood cells are called hairy cells because when they are viewed under the microscope, they have projections coating the outside of the cell that resemble hair.”
Following the diagnosis, Urso, 40, began treatment that has included extended hospital stays, fevers and rigorous chemotherapy sessions. At times, the treatments have required him to keep his distance from his wife, Kamila, and their three sons.
Despite the challenges, Urso refused to indulge in self-pity.
“I didn’t want everyone feeling sorry for me,” he said. “Let’s make this about awareness.”
Seeking to channel that determination and working with employees at his restaurants, Urso launched a fundraising campaign benefiting Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
“I’m a 40-year-old grown man,” he said. “I can’t be a baby about this. There are kids doing this out there.”
Drawing on his love of hockey, Urso and his team created T-shirts that read “Puck Cancer,” which are sold at the restaurants. Patrons can also donate to the cause when purchasing certain menu items.
Additionally, the restaurants are holding raffles on Sundays throughout March, with prizes including concert tickets to shows at The Salt Shed in Chicago later this summer.
The campaign’s goal is to raise $10,000, split evenly between the two hospitals. As of this week, roughly $3,000 has been raised thus far, Urso said.
While any leukemia diagnosis is frightening, the prognosis for hairy cell leukemia is generally excellent with treatment, Tsarwhas, the LFH oncology director, noted.
“Patients can live many years with their condition in remission,” he said. “Newer treatments are looking to improve upon this success and may even lead to a cure.”
After a grueling first few weeks, Urso adds he is beginning to feel better, though he expects the coming months to remain challenging.
Yet he is encouraged by the early success of the fundraiser. While helping children is his immediate focus, Urso said his broader goal is raising awareness about leukemia.
“We can complain about the fire next to us, or we can do something about it,” he said. “Will it make a huge difference in the world? Maybe not. But if it brings awareness to people and helps someone catch something earlier, that could be a big thing.”
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.