Donate to Sophie's Fight for Health and Hope

Most of you remember that my daughter was diagnosed in April 2021 with a Grade 2 IDH-1 Mutant Astrocytoma Glioma, a form of brain tumor in her back left parietal. After a successful gross total resection, she was on “watch and wait” observations over the last 3+ years with her team at UNC Chapel Hill.

October started out as a normal month for Sophie as she was headed to her routine 6-month post-op round of scans. Unfortunately, at this appointment, it was discovered that her malignant tumor had, in fact, returned.

As Sophie is now living in Florida and not North Carolina, part of an overwhelming next step was to figure out which medical facility and team of doctors would make the most sense to proceed with her continued care. After a month of consults with various hospitals, she has decided to move forward with making the switch to the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, an extremely reputable hospital within the Brain Tumor Community with one of the top neurosurgeons in the world, Dr. Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa.

The Tumor Board at Mayo has concluded that a Supra-Marginal Awake Craniotomy (a procedure where the goal is to not only remove the mass but additional tissue beyond the region of the tumor to target the area of the mass that is thought to be essential for disease progression, recurrence, and resistance to treatment) is the best next step followed by six to 18+ months of immediate treatment as a more aggressive approach this time around. The purpose of an awake craniotomy this time is not only to remove as much of the tumor as safely as possible, but to test her motor function while in the OR, as the location of her tumor controls language, cognition, sensation, and body movement. The goal is to protect Sophie’s language, sensory, and motor abilities. Although, the same deficits she experienced before are expected to happen again as part of the delicate nature of the region of this tumor. With the help of post-op physical therapy and Sophie’s determined attitude and encouragement from others, we are confident she will make it to the other side.

Additionally, it is at the recommendation of Sophie’s oncology team that she undergo the IVF egg retrieval & preservation process since chemotherapy drugs and radiation tend to have negative impacts on a woman’s fertility, and she desires to have a family of her own eventually. She will start this process within the next week as it must be finished before surgery in January.

With Sophie’s blessing, we have organized this fundraiser to help ease the financial burden she is facing during this difficult journey. The funds raised will be used to offset costs associated with IVF / egg preservation, surgery, and all other medical bills, scans, long-term treatment, required biweekly labs once treatment has begun, physical therapy, travel and living expenses, and time away from work.

Any help is truly appreciated not only by Sophie but also by all of those who love and care about her.

First, we ask that you pray; second, we ask that you share this link; and third, we ask that you donate if you feel led to.

Thank you for taking the time to read about the next steps of her journey. She certainly has a long road ahead of her.

If you prefer to give a monetary donation, not through GoFundMe, her Venmo is @sophie-ivy, and she also has Zelle & Venmo (private message her for her phone number and address, if needed).