Help Jessica fight cancer

I am starting this fundraiser to support my cousin Jessica.

Jessica is 24 years old. For the past two years, she has been struggling with what she and her doctors believed was colitis and other GI problems. She was often in pain and sometimes unable to eat without getting sick. Two weeks ago, her abdominal pain had become too much to handle, so she went to the emergency room. She received an ultrasound that showed large masses on her ovaries and fluid in her abdomen. She was given the devastating news that the doctors suspected ovarian cancer. The fluid was drained off her abdomen and they ran some more tests. The results of that testing couldn’t confirm ovarian cancer so, because ovarian cancer is so rare in a person her age, her doctors were hopeful the tumors were benign or precancerous. She was scheduled for a hysterectomy and the removal of both her ovaries earlier this week. 

The surgery was scheduled for three hours but her surgeons quickly realized her condition was worse than expected. The doctors confirmed she had cancer which had spread throughout her abdomen. Her doctor said he couldn’t understand how she was even able to function for so long in that condition. In addition to her uterus and ovaries, the doctors took her cervix, gallbladder, spleen, appendix, and a portion of her bowel. After heavy bleeding caused by a liver laceration, she coded on the operating table and needed a blood transfusion. Miraculously, she was awake and talking in the ICU that night. The next step for Jessica is chemotherapy. Needless to say, she has a long road ahead of her. 

This diagnosis has been devastating to Jessica and those who know and love her. She is always thinking of others and never hesitates to lend a helping hand. The day after her major surgery, she was even sending out happy birthday texts to another family member. Just before her trip to the emergency room where she first discovered the tumors, Jessica graduated from Indiana University Kokomo with a bachelors degree in Biological and Physical Science. She has been working as a pharmacy tech for the past 5 years and was saving up for pharmacy school. 

My hope is that this fundraiser will help her get the treatment she needs to live a long fulfilling life and to continue to pursue her dreams after she recovers.