WHY CODE 3 FOR A CURE WAS CREATED
Lorenzo began his firefighting career with the Pomona Fire Department in California in 1974.
In 1980, Lorenzo joined the Santa Ana Fire Department.
Because of his size and strength, Lorenzo (3rd from right) was nicknamed "Mongo" by his comrades.
1990 - Following a commercial building fire (Lorenzo is pictured center).
In 1991, Lorenzo received the California State Fireman's Medal of Valor.
In 1999, during his first cancer battle, Lorenzo spoke at the unveiling of the new Prostate Cancer Awareness Stamp at the Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center. Little did he know that 10 years later he would be fighting prostate cancer (his third cancer diagnosis).
During his first cancer battle, Lorenzo gave the woman he calls his "angel," Peggy, the wedding of her dreams when he married her in the middle of Times Square, New York on the ABC program "Good morning America" on June 22, 2001. They have been happily married ever since.
At the time of their wedding, little did Lorenzo and Peggy know just how many medical calamities lay ahead of them. This one, which occurred in March 2006 during Lorenzo's second battle with cancer (he had been diagnosed with bladder cancer in 2003), involved a frantic search for blood so that Lorenzo could receive the surgery he needed to remove a fast growing tumor in his kidney. It wasn't until after the surgery they learned this wasn't a third cancer (that would come later), but rather a rare disease of the kidney called "oncocytoma," which looks and acts like cancer until it is biopsied and studied under a microscope.
It was at this point, and after witnessing many of his fellow firefighters die from cancer, that Lorenzo decided to fight back against cancer. He created Code 3 for a Cure to unite firefighters against cancer, with the goal of helping his brother and sister firefighters who are experiencing the same struggles he did.
On June 13, 2008, Code 3 for a Cure embarked on its first Mission of Honor and Hope across America. Pictured here is the Birmingham Fire Department awaiting Code 3's arrival on July 4, 2008.
Houston Fire Department Station 33. This was Lorenzo's "home away from home" where he stayed while he underwent treatment for prostate cancer, April-June 2009 at MD Anderson in Houston. Lorenzo basked in the camaraderie of the Houston firefighters, which kept his spirits high in the midst of a challenging treatment process. Thanks to the benevolence of Chief Phil Boriskie and Assistant Chief Lorenzo Diaz, Houston is working on converting one of its stations into a firefighter house, where firefighters from across the nation, and the world, can stay while they undergo cancer treatments in Houston's medical center.
Lorenzo "Mongo" Abundiz enjoys some Houston camaraderie.
Lorenzo's wife Peggy paid Lorenzo some visits while he was at Station 33, and received the same warm welcome and kindness Lorenzo did.
In addition to hormone treatments, Lorenzo underwent what is called "Proton Therapy," a focused form of radiation which seeks to destroy the cancer at its source while minimizing damage to surrounding tissues.
Lorenzo undergoes Proton Therapy.
Lorenzo has found a new hero: Dr. Lee.
June 2009 - A tradition of MD Anderson's Proton Therapy Center is to have patients, on their last day of treatment (commonly referred to as "graduation"), ring a "gong" symbolizing the restoration of balance and harmony in the patient's body and in their life. Here, Lorenzo (right) ceremoniously rings the gong, surrounded by the supportive Houston Firefighters. Pictured left is Chief Lorenzo Diaz, the major mastermind and "doer" behind the Houston Firefighter House project.
The term "Code 3" is used to refer to a firefighting call in which the fastest and most urgent response is needed, and lights and sirens are utilized because the firefighters need to get to the scene in a hurry. Its meaning in the context of this organization is, let's hurry to find a cure for cancer and, in the meantime, encourage early cancer screenings and help those who are suffering from cancer.