Dr. Nick Mondek is an anesthesiologist and health advocate from Los Angeles. Then, in April 2025, he hit a wall with the news that his acute myeloid leukemia had returned. Dr. Mondek had already fought a rare, aggressive form of blood cancer through chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant. Now, he’s back up against a more precarious wall. As his health quickly declined, he received a bleak prognosis and would come to have an urgent need for a donor.
During those particularly dark days in June, thoughts of Dr. Mondek’s family was motivation enough to keep him pushing forward. This drive propelled him to pursue every alternative treatment option available. Having found no suitable donor match, he looked to his own son, 10-year-old Stephen Mondek. “It was a dismal prognosis, and I needed a donor immediately, and there was no one available,” Dr. Mondek recalled.
Grasping the severity of the emotional storm, Dr. Mondek took on Stephen with kid gloves. He shared that he didn’t want his kid to feel guilty or forced into being of service. “The biggest factor that I had in my brain was that I don’t want him to feel forced,” he explained. Dr. Mondek failed to disclose that Stephen was their default choice. Rather than a diagnosis though, he requested to know if Stephen wanted to be tested to see if he could be a match for donation.
Doctors at Cedars-Sinai successfully extracted stem cells from Stephen, who is often described as “very shy” but altruistic and caring towards others. With everything as bad as it was, Stephen didn’t let that stop him. He again went back to baseball practice only three or four days after his donation, demonstrating his courageous spirit.
As a result, Dr. Mondek’s prognosis was greatly improved when on July 30, he received his second stem cell transplant. Reflecting on Stephen’s selfless act, Dr. Mondek said, “Stephen is proof that real-life heroes come in all shapes, sizes and even ages.” He added, “He didn’t have to put on a cape or leap buildings in a single bound. Instead, he put on a hospital gown and gave me hope.”
Dr. Mondek said he couldn’t be prouder of his son’s courage. “I’m not just honored to call this boy my son. I am just as honored to call him my hero,” he stated.
“It feels good to do that because all my friends are proud of me,” he shared.
