Help Lili Fight Ovarian Cancer
Donation protected
Hi everyone. My original GoFundMe expired while I was very sick and unable to renew so I had to make a new one. Here is my story:
In early 2020 I felt something off with my abdomen. It seemed to distend & I had bowel changes. I just passed it off as having bad gas or just the “normal” bloating we all get. TMI, but I was unable to have a bowel movement for over a week, even after taking all of the laxatives & enemas. I knew something was wrong so I took myself to the ER on 2/17/2020. I went in for an X-ray, then a CT scan where the doctors found multiple masses obstructing my bowels. I was told I had to go into emergency surgery & would most likely come out of it with a colostomy. At that time, I had no idea what a colostomy was. I called my parents & they were on the next flights to be with me. My surgery went ok—I was so inflamed they could barely do anything but decompress my bowels & do the colostomy. They found several tumors I spent a week in the hospital as the pathology results came back & I was diagnosed with Low-Grade Serous Carcinoma—a very rare form of Ovarian Cancer.
Shortly after I started my treatment—an oral chemo drug that blocks estrogen (because my cancer is hormone-responsive). About 5 months, June 2020, later my stomach felt distended again & I knew something was wrong. I went to the ER & scans determined that I had appendicitis from my cancer. I had a few days of hospital stay & they decided to treat it with antibiotics & scheduled major surgery (including taking the cancer out) for 6 weeks later. Well, my body decided “No”. 2 weeks later, I rushed myself to the ER with the worst pain. I knew my appendix has burst. Sure enough, it did & I was out into emergency open surgery once again. It took them about 3 hours to separate all my organs (cancer makes them stick together). They took out my appendix, my uterus, ovaries, Fallopian tubes, cervix as well as the cancer in my abdomen, colon & some they had found on my rectum. I was in the hospital maybe a week then sent home.
On top of everything, all this time I developed an extremely rare ulcerative condition called Pyoderma Gangrenosum. Flesh eating ulcers grew around my stoma (stomach butt-hole LOL). It was the absolute worst pain of my life-hands down. It was worse than all of my surgery pains combined. It got to the point (9/2020) where the area around it was so red, hard & hot to the touch. I knew, again, that something was wrong so back to the ER I went. They said I had cellulitis and admitted me into the hospital. It got worse & nothing could control the pain. I went into another open surgery to remove my stoma & the Pyoderma, then they relocated my stoma. After this surgery, my health started to deteriorate. My BP was crashing as well as all of my other vitals due to septic shock. I was out of it-don’t remember anything in the ICU but my parents were by my side every step of the way. After 8 days in the ICU with several interventions, I started to get better. I went back to the regular hospital areas & had a total of 33 days of hospital stay.
They had to bring me back into the operating room several times, I had a chest tube, I had 2 bowel resections, multiple IV’s in my arms & neck, about a dozen blood transfusions, several scans & gained 70 lbs from the fluid resuscitation. I could barely move. I couldn’t sit up or walk for weeks. I eventually started to gain my strength back with PT & OT.
GEEZ. Excuse my language but what a fucking wild ride. I don’t know how I got through it other than my incredible amazing parents!!! I love them more than anything in this life. They stayed with me every single night. They never left my side. I am extremely blessed to be the luckiest girl in the world to call them my parents. Everyone-my beautiful sisters, cousins, aunts & uncles, grandparents, all of my friends. I couldn’t have done it without you.
Fast forward—It is now April 2021 & I am still healing from that huge fiasco last October. I have a surgical wound that is almost closed (yay!) & mostly have my normal mobility back. My last scan showed that there was no growth & not much detected disease. I’ve been through hell & back but I am SO extremely blessed to be in this moment. Things can somewhat be back to normal.
WELL—that was a long one. Obviously, I have been out of work now for over a year. It’s been rough & I appreciate everyone for supporting me through this time. If you can donate or share my story, it would mean a lot to me. I will never forget what I went through & how it has changed the person I am today. I am so thankful for everyone in my life & for each moment I get to spend with others. I love you all so much.
Love always,
Lili
In early 2020 I felt something off with my abdomen. It seemed to distend & I had bowel changes. I just passed it off as having bad gas or just the “normal” bloating we all get. TMI, but I was unable to have a bowel movement for over a week, even after taking all of the laxatives & enemas. I knew something was wrong so I took myself to the ER on 2/17/2020. I went in for an X-ray, then a CT scan where the doctors found multiple masses obstructing my bowels. I was told I had to go into emergency surgery & would most likely come out of it with a colostomy. At that time, I had no idea what a colostomy was. I called my parents & they were on the next flights to be with me. My surgery went ok—I was so inflamed they could barely do anything but decompress my bowels & do the colostomy. They found several tumors I spent a week in the hospital as the pathology results came back & I was diagnosed with Low-Grade Serous Carcinoma—a very rare form of Ovarian Cancer.
Shortly after I started my treatment—an oral chemo drug that blocks estrogen (because my cancer is hormone-responsive). About 5 months, June 2020, later my stomach felt distended again & I knew something was wrong. I went to the ER & scans determined that I had appendicitis from my cancer. I had a few days of hospital stay & they decided to treat it with antibiotics & scheduled major surgery (including taking the cancer out) for 6 weeks later. Well, my body decided “No”. 2 weeks later, I rushed myself to the ER with the worst pain. I knew my appendix has burst. Sure enough, it did & I was out into emergency open surgery once again. It took them about 3 hours to separate all my organs (cancer makes them stick together). They took out my appendix, my uterus, ovaries, Fallopian tubes, cervix as well as the cancer in my abdomen, colon & some they had found on my rectum. I was in the hospital maybe a week then sent home.
On top of everything, all this time I developed an extremely rare ulcerative condition called Pyoderma Gangrenosum. Flesh eating ulcers grew around my stoma (stomach butt-hole LOL). It was the absolute worst pain of my life-hands down. It was worse than all of my surgery pains combined. It got to the point (9/2020) where the area around it was so red, hard & hot to the touch. I knew, again, that something was wrong so back to the ER I went. They said I had cellulitis and admitted me into the hospital. It got worse & nothing could control the pain. I went into another open surgery to remove my stoma & the Pyoderma, then they relocated my stoma. After this surgery, my health started to deteriorate. My BP was crashing as well as all of my other vitals due to septic shock. I was out of it-don’t remember anything in the ICU but my parents were by my side every step of the way. After 8 days in the ICU with several interventions, I started to get better. I went back to the regular hospital areas & had a total of 33 days of hospital stay.
They had to bring me back into the operating room several times, I had a chest tube, I had 2 bowel resections, multiple IV’s in my arms & neck, about a dozen blood transfusions, several scans & gained 70 lbs from the fluid resuscitation. I could barely move. I couldn’t sit up or walk for weeks. I eventually started to gain my strength back with PT & OT.
GEEZ. Excuse my language but what a fucking wild ride. I don’t know how I got through it other than my incredible amazing parents!!! I love them more than anything in this life. They stayed with me every single night. They never left my side. I am extremely blessed to be the luckiest girl in the world to call them my parents. Everyone-my beautiful sisters, cousins, aunts & uncles, grandparents, all of my friends. I couldn’t have done it without you.
Fast forward—It is now April 2021 & I am still healing from that huge fiasco last October. I have a surgical wound that is almost closed (yay!) & mostly have my normal mobility back. My last scan showed that there was no growth & not much detected disease. I’ve been through hell & back but I am SO extremely blessed to be in this moment. Things can somewhat be back to normal.
WELL—that was a long one. Obviously, I have been out of work now for over a year. It’s been rough & I appreciate everyone for supporting me through this time. If you can donate or share my story, it would mean a lot to me. I will never forget what I went through & how it has changed the person I am today. I am so thankful for everyone in my life & for each moment I get to spend with others. I love you all so much.
Love always,
Lili
Co-organizers (2)
Lili Stander
Organizer
Miami Beach, FL
Alan Stander
Co-organizer