Seeking help with my new meal service for cancer patients

I wanted to check in with all of you that have donated and sent kind messages of support over the past 18 months. After the medical trial of targeted chemo at the end of last year, it looks like it has finally done the trick as I’m officially in remission with clear CT & PET scans and normal bloodwork. I have another PET scan in about a month and I’ll see my oncologist on March 11th for the results. But I feel really healthy and have gained back all the weight that I lost during chemo (I got down to 103 at my lowest) A huge part of that has been the dietary system I’ve been following.

Once I began radiation, I soon started having problems with weight loss as well as the physicality of eating, and I struggled to ingest enough nutrients. Radiation destroyed my sense of taste, made my dry mouth sore, and rendered eating anything spicy, peppery or acidic impossible. I resorted to eating soft, bland or liquid foods, but getting enough vegetables and protein was always an issue. Then chemo brought with it extreme nausea on waking or at any time I had hunger pangs, not to mention extreme fatigue and lack of focus. It’s been really challenging managing all of these side effects, while trying to maintain and gain weight, but through trial and error (and a lot of experimenting in the kitchen) I finally figured out a diet plan that has worked for me.

My system consists of 12 different items daily (including gallons of alkaline water); small amounts of delicious, organic, easy to eat and digest items which are packed with nutrients, primarily plant-based and completely sugar-free. It includes a superfood shot, a veggie smoothie, amazing soups as well as several very naughty tasting desserts and yummy veggie dips and several mains. If one suffers nausea with hunger pains, why not keep eating a little something so that one never gets hungry? On this diet I’ve gained 14 lbs in a couple of months, (6 lbs while on chemo), and my skin has never been clearer, while my brain is ultra-focused.

So I’m setting up a business which will deliver this diet system to other cancer, radiation and chemo patients locally. I believe it could also be useful to anyone suffering with any disease which causes weight loss, fatigue and lack of focus. I ultimately have plans to provide other propriety services designed for cancer patients and their carers including at-home self-care, pet help and home detox. I’m asking for financial help now as I have some initial hard costs before I can take this idea to investors: I need to hire a graphic designer to help with the proposal/deck and business plan, I need a large used freezer and a lot of produce and supplements as well as sustainable packaging, ice packs and delivery items. My plan is to start building a small local clientele of up to 8 clients, for whom I can cook at home and I’ll hire someone to deliver the food twice a week. Once I have an investor I’ll rent a ghost kitchen, build a website and hire staff, but that will require significant funding.

I haven’t given up on filmmaking, I just feel very strongly that this is important now. There were 20 million new cancer diagnoses in the US alone last year and 1 in 5 people worldwide will receive the diagnosis in their lifetime. The good news is that more people are surviving due to medical advancements, but these cancer drugs do take their toll. This huge community has been badly underserved nutrition - wise and I want to change that by offering delicious, calorie-rich, organic home-cooked food that only needs a brief warming as far as prep. I was mostly alone during the last 18 months, and having something like this would have been a godsend. But I’ve learnt a lot during this time and now I want to pass that knowledge and support onto others. If you’re unable to help, please share, and if you or someone you love is going through this in LA let me know if I can cook for you. You can DM me on social media and I will respond, or please contact me here for detailed menu items and pricing. Thanks again x