Peter Togasaki, a 26-year-old bike builder at California-based Wrench Science, has recently been diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia. Togasaki, who's been a bike mechanic for seven years, had been feeling ill for weeks, but never expected to be diagnosed with cancer of the blood and bone marrow.
Togasaki is facing a battle that will span approximately six months, receiving intermittent chemotherapy treatments in an Oakland hospital with the possibility of a bone-marrow transplant. Togasaki, who's also a part-time student at UC Berkeley, has the support of his nearby friends and family, but is also hopeful that others in the cycling community can pitch in. "I have a 2006 Triumph Speed Four motorcycle that's up for sale," he says. "Cancer kind of hits you in the pocketbook, too."
