Latest news with #PeaksofMind
Daily Mail
05-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
American father raising money for sick kids dies on Mt. Makalu
An American mountaineer who was climbing to raise funds for a children's cancer charity has died on a Himalayan peak while preparing for his summit attempt. Alexander Pancoe, 39, from Illinois, suffered a suspected cardiac arrest late Sunday night at Camp II on Mt Makalu in Nepal, the world's fifth-highest mountain. The highly experienced climber, who was a brain tumor survivor, had just completed an acclimatization rotation to Camp III. 'Alex felt uncomfortable while he returned from the camp three of the 8,485-metre mountain completing his acclimatization rotation,' Iswari Paudel of Himalayan Guides confirmed to the Himalayan Times. Expedition officials told the Independent that Pancoe was preparing to rest for the night when he suddenly felt unwell. His teammates attempted to revive him for over an hour, yet he tragically remained unresponsive. The father of two young children was on the challenging climb to raise $27,838 (the height of Mt Makalu in feet) for Lurie Children's pediatric blood cancer program in his hometown of Chicago. Pancoe had also been fighting chronic myeloid leukemia at the time of his death. He was the founder of Peaks of Mind, a non profit that combines climbing to 'raise awareness and make a difference.' The father of two young children was on the challenging climb to raise $27,838 (the height of Mt Makalu in feet) for Lurie Children's pediatric blood cancer program in his hometown of Chicago 'In 2005, I was diagnosed with a brain tumor and successfully operated on at Lurie Children's Hospital. 20 years later I have had no complications,' he explained on the Peaks of Mind's website. 'In 2016, I went on a life-changing adventure to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. In the years following, I fell in love with adventure, overcoming fear, and pushing my physical and mental limits.' The experienced climber had already achieved major feats before his final expedition - while raising funds for sick kids along the way. 'I got this crazy idea in my head (the crazy is something the surgery didn't change) to pursue the Explorer's Grand Slam - a challenge that involves climbing the 7 summits and skiing to both the North and South Pole.' 'While pursuing this dream, I raised awareness, shared other patients' journeys, and raise funds for pediatric brain tumor research at Lurie Children's - giving back to the amazing institution that saved his life years prior.' He had previous close calls. During a 2023 climb of Ama Dablam in the Himalayas Pancoe was when he first noticed serious health problems. 'It was a wild few years filled with adventure, a near fatal climbing injury that required a blackhawk helicopter rescue, and lots of climbing! In 2019, upon summiting Everest and Denali, I became just the 15th American and one of 75 people in the world to complete the Grand Slam, raising almost $500,000 in the process for Lurie Children's.' 'In 2023. while climbing Ama Dablam, a challenging climb in the Himalayan range, I became extremely hypoxic and struggled with the altitude. Several months later I was diagnosed with Chronic Myeloid Leukemia and learned my body had been unable to make the red bloods cells necessary to acclimate at altitude.' But despite the devastating diagnosis, Pancoe was determined to continue his mission. 'CML is a lifelong cancer and after almost two years of receiving treatment to manage it - I am going to be attempting to climb Makalu, the 5th highest mountain the world and raise $27,838 (the height if Makalu in feet) for Lurie Children's pediatric blood cancer program.
CBS News
05-05-2025
- Health
- CBS News
U.S. climber who survived brain tumor dies trying to scale world's fifth-highest mountain
An American climber died attempting to scale the world's fifth-highest mountain, Makalu, in the Himalayas, his expedition organizer said Monday. It was the second death of this climbing season. Alexander Pancoe, 39, died at Camp 2 of the 27,838-foot mountain Sunday evening. "He had descended after an acclimatization rotation to Camp Three, and was not feeling well," Iswari Paudel of Himalayan Guides Nepal told the AFP news agency. Paudel said that attempts were being made to bring his body down. Pancoe, an accomplished climber and graduate of Northwestern University, had survived a brain tumor when he was younger, CBS Chicago reported. He had completed the Explorer's Grand Slam, a challenge that involves climbing the highest peak on each of the seven continents and then skiing to both the North and South Pole. Pancoe survived a near-fatal fall in 2018, when a piece of rock broke off in his hand, and he hit a sharp edge, CBS Chicago reported. He badly injured his leg and suffered frostbite before crawling to get cell service and being airlifted to safety. Pancoe was recently fighting chronic myeloid leukemia and was attempting to climb Makalu to raise funds for the pediatric blood cancer program of the Lurie Children's Hospital, based in Chicago. In 2019, CBS Chicago reported that he dedicated his climb of Mount Everest to Serena Lewis, a teenager with whom he shared a special bond — they had both survived brain tumors thanks to doctors at Lurie Children's Hospital. "It's going to be a huge challenge for me — climbing at altitude is plenty hard without a chronic ailment — but I look forward to rising to the challenge," he said on his website, Peaks of Mind. Summits of Mt. Everest, Mt. Nuptse and Mt. Makalu, seen from summit of Gokyo Ri, at sunrise on Sept. 20, 2019. Frank Bienewald/LightRocket via Getty Images An Austrian climber died while descending Nepal's Ama Dablam after a successful summit last month, the first death of the summit season. Nepal is home to eight of the world's 10 highest peaks, including Mount Everest, and welcomes climbers from around the world every year during the spring and autumn climbing seasons. It has already issued nearly 500 permits for its mountains this season, including 214 for Everest.
The Independent
05-05-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Highly experienced American mountaineer dies of cardiac arrest climbing 8,485m peak
American mountaineer Alexander Pancoe died, likely from cardiac arrest, while preparing to summit Mt Makalu in Nepal. The renowned mountaineer from Illinois felt unwell late on Sunday night at Camp II after returning from Camp III, Iswari Paudel, managing director at Himalayan Guides, the expedition organiser, told The Independent. Pancoe, 39, had completed an acclimatisation rotation to Camp III, a practice climb meant to help the body adapt to reduced oxygen levels before a summit attempt. Pancoe aimed to raise $27,838 – the height of Mt Makalu in feet – for Lurie Children's pediatric blood cancer programme in his hometown. The climber had survived a brain tumour but was battling leukaemia at the time of his death. On Mt Makalu, the fifth-highest peak in the world at 8,485m above the sea level, climbers pass through high-altitude camps to acclimatise to the conditions. Camp II is generally at 6,600-6,800m and Camp III at 7,300-7,400m. Mr Paudal told The Independent that 'Alex died possibly of cardiac arrest'. 'The cause of the death can be confirmed after postmortem only, but we suspect that it was a cardiac arrest,' he said on the phone from Kathmandu. Mr Paudel said Pancoe had reached Nepal early last month. On Sunday, Pancoe's team of four, his expedition leader, was about to rest for the night when he felt unwell. The teammates tried to revive him for over an hour, but he was unresponsive, Mr Paudel said. Pancoe's family and the US embassy in Kathmandu had been informed of his death, Mr Paudel said, and efforts are ongoing to retrieve his body from the camp. The Independent has reached out to the US embassy in Kathmandu for comment. The Himalayan peak of Mt Makalu is on the border between Nepal and China's Tibet, about 23 km southeast of Mt Everest. Pancoe was a prominent figure in the mountaineering community. He dedicated his adventure pursuits to supporting Lurie Children's Hospital in Illinois where he had been operated upon after being diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2005. He aimed to raise funds for brain tumour research by completing the Explorers Grand Slam, a rare challenge involving climbs of the Seven Summits and cross-country skiing to the North and South Poles. He had founded Peaks of Mind, a project that merged his passion for mountaineering with a commitment to mental health advocacy. 'It was a wild few years filled with adventure, a near-fatal climbing injury that required a Blackhawk helicopter rescue and lots of climbing! In 2019, upon summiting Everest and Denali, I became just the 15th American and one of 75 people in the world to complete the Grand Slam, raising almost $500,000 in the process for Lurie Children's,' Pancoe wrote on the Peaks of Mind website. 'In 2023, while climbing Ama Dablam, a challenging climb in the Himalayan range, I became extremely hypoxic and struggled with the altitude. Several months later I was diagnosed with Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia and learned that my body had been unable to make the red blood cells necessary to acclimate at altitude.' Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia, he explained, was a 'lifelong cancer'. 'After almost two years of receiving treatment to manage it, I am going to be attempting to climb Makalu, the 5th highest mountain in the world and raise $27,838 for Lurie Children's pediatric blood cancer programme.' Pancoe noted that 'climbing at altitude is plenty hard without a chronic ailment' but said he looked forward to 'rising to the challenge'.
Hindustan Times
05-05-2025
- Health
- Hindustan Times
Who was Alexander Pancoe? US climber dies in Nepal while trying to scale world's 5th highest mountain
A US climber died attempting to scale the world's fifth-highest mountain, Makalu, his expedition organiser said Monday, the second death of this climbing season. Alexander Pancoe, 39, died at Camp 2 of the 8,485-metre (27,838-feet) Makalu on Sunday evening. 'He had descended after an acclimatisation rotation to Camp Three, and was not feeling well,' Iswari Paudel of Himalayan Guides Nepal, told AFP. Paudel said that attempts were being made to bring his body down. An accomplished climber, Pancoe had survived a brain tumour when he was younger. He had completed the Explorer's Grand Slam, a challenge that involves climbing the highest peak on each of the seven continents and then skiing to both the North and South Pole. Pancoe was recently fighting chronic myeloid leukaemia and was attempting to climb Makalu to raise funds for the paediatric blood cancer programme of the Lurie Children's Hospital, based in Chicago. 'It's going to be a huge challenge for me -- climbing at altitude is plenty hard without a chronic ailment -- but I look forward to rising to the challenge,' he said on his website Peaks of Mind. An Austrian climber died while descending Nepal's Ama Dablam after a successful summit last month, the first death of the summit season. Nepal is home to eight of the world's 10 highest peaks, including Mount Everest, and welcomes hundreds of climbers every year during the spring and autumn climbing seasons. It has already issued nearly 500 permits for its mountains this season, including 214 for Everest.
Free Malaysia Today
05-05-2025
- Health
- Free Malaysia Today
US mountain climber dies in Nepal
Nepal is home to eight of the world's 10 highest peaks. (EPA Images pic) KATHMANDU : A US climber died attempting to scale the world's fifth highest mountain, Makalu, his expedition organiser said today, the second death of this climbing season. Alexander Pancoe, 39, died at Camp 2 of the 8,485m Makalu yesterday evening. 'He had descended after an acclimatisation rotation to Camp 3, and was not feeling well,' Iswari Paudel of Himalayan Guides Nepal, told AFP. Paudel said that attempts were being made to bring his body down. An accomplished climber, Pancoe had survived a brain tumour when he was younger. He had completed the Explorer's Grand Slam, a challenge that involves climbing the highest peak on each of the seven continents and then skiing to both the North and South Pole. Pancoe was recently fighting chronic myeloid leukaemia and was attempting to climb Makalu to raise funds for the paediatric blood cancer programme of the Lurie Children's Hospital, based in Chicago. 'It's going to be a huge challenge for me – climbing at altitude is plenty hard without a chronic ailment – but I look forward to rising to the challenge,' he said on his website Peaks of Mind. An Austrian climber died while descending Nepal's Ama Dablam after a successful summit last month, the first death of the summit season. Nepal is home to eight of the world's 10 highest peaks, including Mount Everest, and welcomes hundreds of climbers every year during the spring and autumn climbing seasons. It has already issued nearly 500 permits for its mountains this season, including 214 for Everest.
