Can stem cell therapy save a beloved coach?

The Facebook post late Thursday night landed like a punch to the gut to everyone who knows Jeff Dienhart.

The beloved Central Catholic girls assistant basketball coach, who has been waging a fierce struggle against the suffocating ravages of cystic fibrosis, abruptly announced that the end is now near.

"I was sent home today from the hospital on hospice care. I received the sacrament of confession and the anointing of the sick last night from father Daniel garland. I am at home under medication. Could have days could have weeks could have months no one knows. Just know I am at peace. I am scared and dont want to leave this place on earth.. I have fought so hard for so long. I am so tired and have suffered so much this year .please pray for my wife Valerie my daughter Alicia and my son drew during this tough time."

My husband and I came to the conclusion that he is a fighter. Odds don't mean anything to him.

It was not supposed to end this way. Dienhart was, in fact, just days away from an experimental stem cell treatment that he hoped would extend his life. Friends, family and the community had raised more than $70,000 to cover the costs.

And Dienhart, 44, had beaten so many odds before.

The statistics suggest, for example, that many men with cystic fibrosis are infertile, yet Dienhart fathered two children.

Central Catholic assistant girls basketball coaches Jeff Dienhart, foreground, and Dave Crandall watch the action as the Knights host Guerin Catholic on Jan. 30. It was the first game for Dienhart in quite a while, as he had spent the better part of the month of January in the hospital. Dienhart is set to receive stem cell treatment in the Dominican Republic to hopefully assist in his battle with cystic fibrosis. (Photo: John Terhune/Journal & Courier)

Nor were CF sufferers supposed to be able to play marathon rounds of golf.

"I would tell the doctor he played 36 holes of golf in 90-degree heat," said Dienhart's mother, Kathy Dienhart. "The doctor would tell me I made that up. My husband and I came to the conclusion that he is a fighter. Odds don't mean anything to him."

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Can stem cell therapy save a beloved coach?