An 18-year-old Chicago native battling terminal cancer is making an emotional plea from his bed in Durango, Mexico: he wants to see his parents one last time.
Kevin Gonzalez, who is suffering from stage four colon cancer, spoke with Telemundo Chicago crews while surrounded by family. Missing in the room, his mother and father; who remain in federal immigration custody in Arizona.
“I want to see my parents, even if it’s for the last time,” Kevin Gonzalez said.
Doctors have told Kevin that treatment is no longer an option. According to his grandmother, the cancer has spread to his stomach and lungs, leaving him unable to sleep or eat.
“He has terminal colon cancer,” said Virginia Amaya, Kevin’s grandmother. “It has invaded his stomach and lungs. He doesn’t sleep. He doesn’t eat.”
Kevin was diagnosed in January, but relatives say the disease progressed rapidly.
Kevin’s parents were both deported in 2011. His mother, Anabel, allegedly reentered the United States illegally in 2024 and was deported again later that year.
While Kevin remained in Chicago with his grandmother, his parents continued living in Mexico. Kevin was born in the United States and is a U.S. Citizen.
After learning of their son’s terminal diagnosis, both parents reportedly attempted to return to the United States earlier this year, seeking what the family described as a humanitarian exception so they could be with Kevin.
According to federal officials, their request was denied. Authorities say the couple later attempted to cross the border illegally and were detained in Douglas, Arizona.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said in a statement: “These illegal aliens did not apply for humanitarian parole. They applied for B1/B2 visas which were denied due to their previous unlawful presence and entries into the United States.”
Kevin’s parents are scheduled to appear before an immigration judge Thursday morning, in Arizona.
The Mexican Consulate in Arizona has become involved in the case, urging U.S. authorities to consider the family’s circumstances.
“The reality is the American authorities are going to manage the case,” said Fernando Sanchez, the Mexican consul in Tucson. “We cannot tell them what to do, but we are absolutely asking the judge to consider the situation the family is in right now.”
Lawmakers in Washington, including Texas Congressman Joaquin Castro, are also reportedly advocating on the family’s behalf.
If the judge orders deportation, Kevin’s parents could potentially reunite with their son in Mexico. They would be released from Custody and transferred to Nogales. If they face federal immigration charges, they could remain detained in the United States.
For Kevin, the request remains painfully simple.
“I’m asking you to do whatever you can to release them,” he said. “I just want to spend my last days with them.”
