As I write this, my mom is going through her second Chemo
treatment.
My sister and I started a go fund me account to try and help her with this trying time. Here is our story so far.
If you would like to see the site it is:
One month
ago our world was turned upside down. My sister and I were told that our mom
has triple negative stage 4 breast cancer. The whirlwind of events that have
taken place since that day in August have left us all drained and stressed. We
try to hide it from Mom because she does not need the stress while fighting
this horrible disease, but we can see the stress on her face too.
I would
like to start by saying my mother, Sue, is a wonderful person. She has always
been there to help my sister and I through some rough times and never
complained. Now when she needs us most, we are trying to be there to take of
everything for her.
In the last
few weeks we have been on an emotional roller coaster. First, we found out
there were three lumps, and then she went to a specialist and had a mammogram.
They came back and said it was cancer. Then came the biopsy, and we found out
it was malignant. The doctor said it was a very treatable kind of cancer. So
then it was off to get a PET scan within 3 days. Then we all went to the
oncologist and found out that it was all over. There was a large mass on her
right side and in two lymph nodes under her arm and a small one on her
esophagus. They said stage 4 and my heart sunk. They then said Chemotherapy
just to get it under control and keep her alive longer. They would not be able
to cure her. He wanted to start Chemotherapy right away. He scheduled her for
surgery to insert a pick so they would not have to put in an IV every week. The
surgery went well, or so we thought. By the next afternoon she was in the
hospital with a collapsed lung. They were able to insert a chest tube and
slowly get the lung back up and working. After three days in the hospital she
came home. Things were very uneventful for three days, then we had to go in and
have the chest tube removed. All went well, and the next day we started chemo.
It was a long day; first she had x-rays to make sure the lungs were ok. Then,
they did blood work ups to make sure her counts were ok and to check her
potassium levels. They were then ready for her treatment. Now a week later we
are on the second treatment. They have not said how long this will go on, but I
imagine for quite a while.
Now I told you all that so I could
tell you that when this all started she had no insurance. She has worked all
her life and was in retail when this started. There is no insurance offered to
her in her line of work. So the weight of all the bills for the doctor and now
treatment are on her shoulders. My sister and I have worked along with a
wonderful person, Lynette Basiou of Providence,
god bless her, and we have gotten her approved for Oregon Health Plan. We are
still up in the air about what they will and will not cover, but it is
something. She also has not been able to work hardly at all since the start of
this and the bills are starting to pile up. I would love to be able to take
care of all her bills and medical, but with my sister and I trying to keep our
own families above water in these trying times, I just can not help
financially. It is hard for me to say that, since she was always there to help
me. We are trying to raise enough to help with paying off the house and having
some left over to pay, if need be, any medical bills that will arise, while
making sure there is still food in the house and medicine that is needed. We
went to Social Security and did all that paperwork, but they are saying it
could take up to 6 months before we see anything from them. I have told Mom not
to worry my sister and I will deal with it. So it is with hope I ask anyone
please help me make some of my Mom’s worries go away.
It is very humbling to be in this
position and to have to ask for help in this way. But sometimes God has lessons
for you that need to be learned at the bottom of life. I am very grateful that
you have thought enough of my family to take the time to read this, and any
amount you are able to contribute to our goal is tremendously appreciated. If
you are unable to help financially right now, believe me, I understand. Sending
prayers also helps.
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