Exclusive: Altoona's mayor to undergo stomach removal amid cancer battle
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Dean O'Connor has served Altoona on the City Council or as mayor for more than a decade. Photo: Courtesy of City of Altoona
Altoona Mayor Dean O'Connor has cancer and will have his stomach removed for treatment as early as next month, he tells Axios.
The big picture: O'Connor, 59, is a central figure in regional decision-making, serving as the top-elected official in one of the metro's fastest-growing cities.
- He's also a member of major transportation and planning boards.
Catch up fast: O'Connor was hospitalized in early November with symptoms he initially thought were heart-related.
- Doctors found a large cancerous lesion in his stomach.
State of play: He plans to "slog ahead" with his elected and professional duties through chemotherapy, surgery and recovery, saying doctors tell him he'll live a different life moving forward but will be fine.
- He's already undergone multiple rounds of chemo and immunotherapy.
How it works: When the stomach is removed in a total gastrectomy, surgeons reconnect the digestive tract so food travels directly from the esophagus into the small intestine.
- That bypasses the stomach's usual role as a reservoir and initial digestion chamber, forcing the body to adapt to a new way of processing food.
- O'Connor anticipates eating small amounts more frequently for the rest of his life because his digestive tract can't handle large meals.
Flashback: O'Connor served on the Altoona council for six years before being elected mayor in November 2017. His current term expires at the end of 2027.
- He is on the boards of the Metro Waste Authority, DART and the DSM Area Metropolitan Planning Organization.
- He and his family also own Larry's Window Service, a metro-area business that employs dozens of people and has been operating for about 60 years.
Behind the scenes: O'Connor tells Axios that he continues to push himself to attend as many city meetings and events as possible.
Yes, but: He has attended a few meetings remotely when he's exhausted after chemo and has caught himself dozing off at his desk on occasion.
- "I love the city of Altoona, and I'm not gonna let anything like this bother what we've got going on," he said.