Mr. Cai had just immigrated to the United States and was settling down in Brooklyn with his wife and three daughters when he learned some very serious news: he had lung cancer.

Because of his unfamiliarity with options for medical welfare in the United States, Mr. Cai, fearing the huge costs of the necessary procedures, gave up his chance for treatment. Passing up the chance for early intervention, the cancer has advanced to Stage III, and the 45-year-old Cai is unable to walk.

When Reverend Samuel Wong of Brooklyn's Chinese Promise Baptist Church learned of Mr. Cai's condition, he was deeply concerned. He urges all new immigrants with medical conditions to seek help within the community, and to never pass up any opportunity for a cure.

Mr. Cai immigrated to the United States on February 26, bringing his wife and three daughters with him from Guangzhou, China. Soon after arriving, he fell ill. Fearing the high cost of hospitalization in the States, Cai traveled back to Guangzhou for medical care in mid-March. But with Stage III cancer, he decided: "If I die, I want to die in the United States near my family," and returned to New York in early April to settle in Dyker Heights to pass his last days with his family members. His condition continued to deteriorate, and the pain became unbearable.

Reverend Wong, who is also chair of the Sunset Park Health Council, said yesterday that he learned from a fellow minister of a Flushing church that there was a member of his congregation who lived in Brooklyn and was unwell. Wong immediately went to visit him, and learned of Mr. Cai's condition.

"His right lymph node was swollen to the size of an egg," Wong said.

When Wong met with Cai's family members, he learned that Cai had given up the chance for treatment because he feared the high cost for treatment would implicate his guarantors. Afterwards, Wong made a special trip to visit Cen Zhenguo, a manager at the nonprofit health insurance organization Health Plus, clarified state health regulations, and brought Mr. Cai, who was already unable to walk, into the care of the Brooklyn Lutheran Medical Center.

Wong, who has been an active servant of the community in Brooklyn for several decades, said that he has seen too many cases in which new immigrants pass up opportunities for treatment because they did not know about or misunderstood health laws. He urged immigrants not to let language difficulties stand in between them and the rights they deserve.

Cen Zhenguo explained that in this case, Mr. Cai actually would have been qualified as a low income-earner to apply for Medicaid. "The application takes time," Cen said, "but after it's been approved, you can get reimbursed for medical procedures retroactively for three months. So to tell the truth, Mr. Cai had no reason to worry about medical expenses."

Cen explained that the government has many available options for health care, and that immigrants of any status can come to Health Plus at 815 59th St. in Brooklyn for help applying. Even if immigrant parents are undocumented, if their children are 19 or younger and have legal status, they are eligible to apply for medical assistance.

"All these options are free," Cen said. "Immigrants should take the initiative to learn what kind of government assistance they are eligible for."