Help Cassie beat Stage 4 Lung Cancer

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Hi, my name is Tom and I am fundraising to help my lovely wife, Cassie, beat stage 4 metastatic lung cancer.

 

Cassie is the most loving and empathetic person I know. In fact, she is overflowing with empathy. Cassie has had a lifetime of fighting medical conditions. She was born with a seizure disorder. She endured the harsh mocking and ignorance from childhood peers, as well as adults, that this seizure disorder attracted. She has had twenty some procedures through out her life to try to correct the seizure disorder. Technology finally advanced to the point where she was able to have the Hypothalamic Hamartoma that was causing the seizures removed. Aside from a couple of hiccups, her seizures are now under control.

 

Cassie has had several other medical issues as well. She has endured many surgeries for various needs. She even had a mild heart attack last year at the age of 48. Through it all, Cassie has endured and fought. She has been victorious in all of her battles. Some battles left scars, and other battles left her with lifelong complications. But, she has won every battle so far. She thinks she is so very weak, but she is the strongest person I know.

 

Through all of her life's battles, she insisted on contributing to society. For most of her working life, in fact, even before work life, Cassie has been fighting for the cause of those who couldn't fight for themselves. During school, she volunteered with a young lady in the special education program. The school didn't want to acknowledge the accomplishments of this young lady by allowing her to graduate with the rest of her class, but Cassie fought for her and she was finally allowed to graduate with everyone else. Cassie spent most of her working life working with adults with disabilities as well as with senior adults that needed extra help.

 

Now Cassie is the one that is in need of a little extra help from others. A few weeks ago, Cassie was having some sickness and fearing that she might take something to the elderly people she works with, she went to the doctor to find out what was going on. She was dealing with a sinus infection and the following week she was dealing with bronchitis. During some testing, it was discovered that Cassie's next medical battle was upon her.

 

Cassie has been diagnosed with metastatic lung cancer, which is a stage 4 cancer that is spreading to other organs. After having a liver biopsy, her oncologist said that she has a rare cancer, in that it has properties of both small cell carcinoma and non-small cell carcinoma. Her oncologist said that he can provide treatment that will stop the growth of the cancer and perhaps shrink it, but eventually, the caner will find a way around the treatment and at that point there is nothing they can do to stop it. So basically, they can extend Cassie's life for an undetermined amount of time, but eventually the cancer will take her life.

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Earlier we had hope in CHIPSA Hospital in Tijuana, Mexico.  Sadly, due to circumstances which we don't want to discuss at this time, Cassie will not be able to receive help from CHIPSA.  Even though our local oncologist isn't offering much hope, we are still hopeful that we will find the help that is needed for Cassie to beat this cancer.  We are waiting for time to pass so that we can get a 2nd opinion from Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN where they have a lot more resources to pull from than Eau Claire does.  Unfortunately, the soonest we can get that 2nd opinion is November 19th, which is 2 months after we discovered the cancer.  As of today, there have been no treatments received yet.  We had another test from the liver biopsy that will indicate if there are any targetable mutations.   We are still waiting for those results.  Cassie just had a brain CT scan to determine whether or not the cancer has spread to her brain.  We are still for that result as well. 

Whether Cassie receives treatment in Eau Claire or in Rochester, her medical insurance will be a great help financially, which was not the case if she went to Tijuana.  We are grateful for the love and support Cassie has received through donations.  Even though we will not be going to Tijuana, those donations that we have received will still be of great help.  We will soon be burdened with extra expenses that insurance will not cover, such as travel, hotels, possible medications and equipment, even loss of income due to Cassie not being able to work at times.

It is difficult to ask for help, but by humbling  ourselves we are now able to ask for help.  So, we don't want to take advantage of anyone or any situation.  We understand that there may have been some people that donated for the express purpose of helping Cassie get to Tijuana.  Since Tijuan is now off the table, if anyone would like a refund of their donation, please request it from Go Fund Me or contact us to receive a refund.  We will understand and there will be no hard feelings.

 

We will continue to accept donations to help off set the extra expenses that will soon come our way.  When I was in school, kids used to throw pennies at each other. I picked those pennies up and put them in a jar. At the end of the school year, I added all those pennies together and paid my way into a skating party. The point is, there is no such thing as too little. Every little bit added to the rest helps.

Another way that you can contribute, besides financially, is time.  Cassie would love to talk to all of you.  Feel free to call, text, email, facebook, or even visit in person. 

 

On behalf of my wife Cassie and myself, I humbly thank you for your willingness to help. 

 

PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT OF ENCOURAGEMENT AND COMMENT ON HOW SHE HAS TOUCHED YOUR LIFE.  THOSE MESSAGES WILL HELP HER GET THROUGHT THE TOUGH DAYS AHEAD.