Cody Needs Your Help

Cody Laursen is a member of the Lloydminster community, and he needs our help! He's been in an unpredictable battle since 2014, as you'll read below. I'd love if we could come together as a community to offer he and his father & caregiver financial relief so Cody can focus on his health, and Roger can focus on supporting Cody emotionally. All monetary donations will be for expenses related to Cody's medical treatment, and he and Roger's living expenses in Saskatoon. In the midst of an ongoing health crisis, financial stress should not be the main concern! Here is Cody's story.

In 2014 Cody was diagnosed with a rare disease called Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis (LCH) which is an extremely rare type of cancer/ autoimmune disease. The side effects of this disease has restricted Cody’s life immensely especially in the area of work. Since his diagnosis in 2014 Cody has medically not been able to work. After a long battle and wait Cody was put on long term disability but the amount was obviously only a portion of his income. His goal has always been to get back to work so that he could be the providing man he once was, but since his diagnosis he has had many trials and tribulations when it’s come to his health that resulted in many doctors’ visits, admissions, treatments, etc.

 After years of various treatments Cody’s levels began to drop resulting in a chain reaction of unpleasant symptoms which worried his cancer doctor. At this point his doctor began to run more in depth tests which confirmed that he was declining, also came across a new issue which was a massive growth in his thyroid. At this point his doctor decided it was time to go through with the stem cell transplant, but first his thyroid had to come out. Everything was put on a high priority list. Within a month the right side of his thyroid was removed (July). In the meantime and while Cody was healing from that surgery, his doctor was getting the ball rolling to deal with the stem cells, which is a huge process. Thankfully there was no issue finding a stem cell donor. His sister Kristin Layonnais, was a 100% match!

The process required Cody to be in the hospital in Saskatoon for 4-6 weeks (which he has already done). He'd live in Saskatoon close to the hospital for 5-6 months with a permanent caregiver, which is his dad. Once he is able to return home to Lloydminster, he will have to continue with medical treatment for another year and a half which will include a lot of travel between Lloyd to Saskatoon. The drive is approximately 2.5 hours each way. If successful, the treatment process will take 2 years to complete. 

 Aside from the medical, physical and emotional stress this has all had on Cody and his family, there is also a financial stress. Fortunately Kinsmen has provided funding for the rental of the condo, but without help from them, it would have been impossible for Cody to have proceeded with the transplant.

The costs of families living in 2 different homes is financially straining for Cody. He's still contributing to paying the bills to support his family at home, in addition to every other added expense as a result of receiving treatment away from home. His father and caregiver Roger is so grateful to be able to be with Cody through his highs and lows, but he's in the same situation financially, covering expenses in Saskatoon and back home in Lloyd. Both men are on an already tight budget. The monthly amount Cody receives from long term disability is next to nothing now considering the inflation over the past 9 years when he began receiving it. Roger was already restricted in how much he could work due to having 3 strokes and a heart attack 20 years ago, and during these past months and the months, he's become Cody’s full time caregiver.  

It's been 3 months since Cody has been residing in Saskatoon. Everything continues to add up for both men, and they're under a lot of stress contemplating the future costs of travelling for treatment between Lloyd and Saskatoon. Obviously finances shouldn't be something he and Roger have to worry about during a battle for one's life, but unfortunately the fact of the matter is, they're sinking. Cody had to visit the food bank so they could eat, but because his address says Alberta, they told him they would only help him this once.

For more information on Cody's disease, I've attached a link below. https://histio.org/langerhans-cell-histiocytosis-in-adults/

I ask that you keep Cody and his family in your thoughts and prayers, and while we understand that donating is not an option for everyone, messages of encouragement also go a long way. I invite you to either post those on the gofundme for he and his family to read, or email them directly to Cody. The goal is to give these guys the support that they so badly need right now.

Thank you for your support! Updates will follow!