Cancer patient jams with Van Halen guitarist
By Shannon Gauthier, Correspondent

SAN DIMAS -- The pain and fear that follows the reality of cancer was forgotten for a day last week when 18-year-old Brian Mammen had a wish granted.

Michael Anthony, of the band Van Halen, visited Mammen's San Dimas home bearing gifts, music and laughter. The May 25 jam session began with Mammen playing the lead song from the animated television series, "King of the Hill."

And it ended with a five-person band filled with Mammen's friends and Anthony playing "Panama," and other oldies but goodies.

"It is times like this that cause people to reach out and really touch each other, and it makes me feel so wonderful," Mammen's grandmother Sandra Mammen said as she tearfully watched her family enjoying themselves. Anthony, whose visit was arranged through Helping Heroes Productions, an Azusa-based nonprofit organization, said he was happy to jam with Mammen.

"I've been blessed with great kids and career, and if I can give anything back I am glad to do it," he said.

It has been a rough few years, Mammen's friends and family said. "He is facing at a young age what most people never have to experience," said Patricia Toepke, one of Brian's teachers at South Hills High School in Covina.

At 15, Brian Mammen learned he had osteosarcoma, a rare bone cancer, in his right leg. After several chemotherapy treatments and painful surgery, Brian finished his freshman year missing his knee and half his femur, but with a body free of cancer.

Regular three-month checkups followed these surgeries, and not long after the initial treatment, cancer was found in his lungs and again in the right leg, forcing the doctors to remove the entire femur.

The surgery gave him two years cancer-free.

If cancer patients make it to two years cancer clear, the odds are definitely in their favor, said family friend Amy Turner. So after two years of testing and coming out clean, Mammen and his family approached his two-year anniversary in March with hope, only to be disappointed.

"The one time I was not thinking the worst, the worst came," Brian's mother, Judi Mammen said, "We were devastated."

Cancer was found in his shoulder, and that demanded immediate attention. In the last two months, Mammen has received three rounds of chemotherapy, finishing up at City of Hope in Duarte on May 23.

He is eager to gain strength for his upcoming activities.

The excitement began with his visit with Anthony, on Saturday he will attend the senior prom and then his high school graduation on June 15. As a developing guitar player, Mammen appreciated the signature guitar strap, CD, and specialized Van Halen picks that Anthony gave him -- not to mention the hourlong jam session.

But the coolest part is the signed bass guitar that will be sold at a June 11 auction and dinner. The event will be held at St. John Lutheran Church, in West Covina, to raise funds and support for the Mammen family, who have a long road of healing ahead of them. After graduation, Mammen will have more chemo treatment, another surgery to remove the cancer from his shoulder and will receive yet another prosthetic bone.

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