Caitlyn's Courageous Fight

Hello Family and Friends. As many of you know, my niece, Caitlyn Hilts, has been battling Hodgkin's Lymphoma cancer since October of 2020. She underwent bi-weekly chemo treatments for 5 months from October 2020 through March 2021. Her doctor is located in Buffalo at The Roswell Cancer Center. Luckily, she was able to receive her chemo locally here at Slocum Dickson as an outpatient. She received great news in early April that she was in remission. She was excited to get back to work and regular life of a 22 year old (now 23). She started a new job as a Direct Support Assistant for NYS DDSO and was on a mission to live life to the fullest.

She went in for a scheduled PET scan in August and they spotted something on the scan. They immediately scheduled a Thoracoscopy so they could biopsy her lymph nodes to determine what they were seeing. It was quickly determined that it was indeed the Lymphoma back again. The plan changed and became more aggressive this time. She’s been receiving a more aggressive chemo since August. This time the chemo is taking place in Buffalo so she’s an inpatient every few weeks. Three days of chemo every third week. She’s hoping to receive a clean PET scan after this next round of chemo. Once she’s in remission again she will begin the process for a Stem Cell Transplant (SCT). This is a lengthy process and Caitlyn will likely be in Buffalo for several weeks. SCT is a procedure in which a patient receives healthy stem cells to replace damaged stem cells. Her transplantation will be autologous which means her own stem cells (rather than from a donor) will be removed, treated and then returned back in to her body after a conditioning regimen. This process will take around 6 weeks and during that time Caitlyn will need to be mostly confined because she won’t have an immune system. She’ll be out of work for another 3-6 months after her SCT process is complete. This will allow her body time to build a healthy immune system again.

Unfortunately because Caitlyn had just started her new job, she doesn’t qualify for any disability due to her cancer being a “pre-existing” condition. She doesn’t qualify for unemployment either because she technically is still employed and has every intention of returning to her job once the doctors give her the go ahead. She’s already gone 3 months without a pay check and her expenses are starting to accrue. We are asking for your help. We hope to raise enough money to alleviate the financial stresses on top of the stress of being sick. We want Caitlyn to focus on what’s most important..…her health.

Your financial contributions will go towards medical deductibles, copays, prescriptions, traveling expenses, as well as everyday living expenses. In addition to financial support, we are asking for your prayers and positive energy to be sent Caitlyn’s way. Cancer is scary but if we all help Caitlyn fight it together, we’ll get her through the finish line. The doctors are extremely optimistic that this treatment will be a success!

On behalf of Caitlyn’s entire family, I would like to thank everyone for their continued support during this difficult time.