Alessandro Colombo, a 48-year-old IT consultant, began treatment for a rare form of urachal bladder cancer in his native Italy. However, when his doctors discovered the tumor had turned metastatic, they had no standard treatment to offer him beyond chemotherapy.

Searching for more promising therapies, Colombo found a clinical research trial at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Center led by Dr. Andrea B. Apolo, a senior investigator at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). Dr. Apolo is one of the world's leading bladder cancer researchers, known for spearheading trials of novel immunotherapy and targeted treatments. Colombo moved to the U.S. to enroll in the clinical trial.

After, the treatment showed remarkable success, shrinking the tumors in his lung and lymph nodes by 38 percent. But a few months later, Colombo developed new metastatic disease in his brain and maxillary sinus. An NIH neurosurgeon removed the brain tumor, but the tumor in his maxillary sinus proved to be an unprecedented challenge. “That was something that we hadn’t seen before,” Apolo said. “It’s a really rare cancer doing a rare thing.”

Apolo consulted an NCI surgical expert, who explained that removing the sinus tumor would be an extremely complicated operation. Colombo could lose an eye and would likely lose half his mouth. Reconstructing his face would require a team of plastic surgeons and vascular microsurgeons to graft tissue from elsewhere on his body. The problem was that the NIH Clinical Center does not have these specialists. While experts at Johns Hopkins could perform the surgery, the estimated cost was a prohibitive $200,000 to $500,000.

Apolo then reached out to colleagues at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, located just across the street from the NIH campus. She contacted Army Lt. Col. (Dr.) Paul Wistermayer, an otolaryngologist and microvascular surgeon, and Army Lt. Col. (Dr.) Ean Saberski, a plastic and reconstructive surgeon. “They right away said, ‘absolutely, yes!’” Apolo recalled.

A new hurdle arose. As an Italian citizen, Colombo was prevented by protocol from being treated on the grounds of Walter Reed. In an extraordinary move, Wistermayer and Saberski offered to get credentialed to perform the surgery at NIH. They would bring their specialized equipment from Walter Reed and operate on Colombo there.

Intense coordination between the two world-class medical institutions began. The Walter Reed team briefed the NIH staff to prepare for the painstaking surgery and recovery. In September 2025, the surgical teams spent 12 hours removing the tumor and then meticulously reconstructed Colombo's face. He spent the next week recovering in the ICU, cared for by NIH staff in constant consultation with the teams from both NIH and Walter Reed.

Colombo described his team of specialists as simply, “amazing.” He emphasized that the experimental treatment at NIH had granted him life he would not have had if he had remained in Italy. His wife, Laura, added, “We do not have words to express our feeling, our gratitude.”

Wistermayer spoke of the powerful connection built between the two facilities, which goes beyond a single patient's care. It involves “building strong connections between two world class medical facilities…greasing the wheels, making it easier to provide support between the two hospitals located across the street [from each other],” he said.

Now an outpatient residing in Bethesda, Colombo is awaiting the final step of his journey: a prosthetic for his mouth and teeth created by Walter Reed specialists.