Help Cassie Kick Cancer
Donation protected
This week, our friend and loved one Cassie is going to have surgery to remove cancerous organs. After this week, she will have to spend at least six weeks recovering before she can go back to her job and the kids she works with. Those of us who love her dearly want to help her by raising money so this experience doesn’t leave her in debt. At a time when we cannot be there for her in person as often as we want, we want to show her that the community around her will help shoulder the burden in the ways available to us.
A Harrowing Year
In April of this year, Cassie noticed she was having irregular and alarming periods. Between a diagnosis of Lynch Syndrome from last summer and a family history of uterine cancer, she knew she couldn’t ignore it. Navigating the stress of visiting the hospital for MRIs and CTs alone during a global pandemic, Cassie met with doctors on multiple occasions to begin understanding what was happening.
During these tests they did a papsmear and biopsy to test for unusual cells and found a blockage in one of Cassie’s uterers (the tube that connects the kidney to the bladder). Her doctors scheduled her for a minor surgery to clear the blockage while they waited for the test results. While she was recovering from the surgery on her uterer, she received news that the cells from her uterus were precancerous. The problems with her kidneys hopefully solved, she and her doctors shifted their focus to hopefully getting ahead of the potential cancer.
During a procedure to remove the precancerous cells, greater concerns arose about the amount of tissue they needed to remove. They decided they needed even more tests given the risk from Lynch Syndrome and the family history, they sent the tissue to pathology. Through all of this, Cassie continued to go to work where she helps children with autism build social and life skills.
After two weeks of waiting, Cassie heard that it was cancer.
Difficult Decisions
Cassie has always prioritized her family. Her many siblings, her parents, her nephew. She has always hoped of one day having a family just as big and full of love, but this news changed that dream permanently. In the pursuit of saving her dreams of motherhood, Cassie made appointments with a fertility clinic to better understand the possibility of freezing eggs. An already expensive prospect that wouldn’t be covered by health insurance, Cassie had big, life altering decisions to make.
Through a few days of tearful conversations with loved ones, pros and cons lists, and a bit of chocolate, Cassie decided not to go through fertility treatments. At 29 years old it was difficult to give up on having children biologically, but the expense and delay to treating the cancer would only make her journey more difficult in the long run.
Treatment and Beyond
On August 27th, Cassie will be having surgery. She will be having a hysterectomy, having her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed and a sentinel dissection of a lymph node to be sure the cancer hasn’t spread further. The recovery will take six to eight weeks, during which she will not be paid by her employer and will be hoping to still move into her own apartment like she planned to before being diagnosed.
Through this journey Cassie has accumulated over $3,000 in medical bills and will be losing out on at least $5,000 of wages from her work in early childhood mental health services. We are asking for help to cover Cassie’s current losses and help boost her in anticipation of future medical bills related to preventative cancer screening. We truly would appreciate any help as well as your positive thoughts and prayers during the difficult time.
A Harrowing Year
In April of this year, Cassie noticed she was having irregular and alarming periods. Between a diagnosis of Lynch Syndrome from last summer and a family history of uterine cancer, she knew she couldn’t ignore it. Navigating the stress of visiting the hospital for MRIs and CTs alone during a global pandemic, Cassie met with doctors on multiple occasions to begin understanding what was happening.
During these tests they did a papsmear and biopsy to test for unusual cells and found a blockage in one of Cassie’s uterers (the tube that connects the kidney to the bladder). Her doctors scheduled her for a minor surgery to clear the blockage while they waited for the test results. While she was recovering from the surgery on her uterer, she received news that the cells from her uterus were precancerous. The problems with her kidneys hopefully solved, she and her doctors shifted their focus to hopefully getting ahead of the potential cancer.
During a procedure to remove the precancerous cells, greater concerns arose about the amount of tissue they needed to remove. They decided they needed even more tests given the risk from Lynch Syndrome and the family history, they sent the tissue to pathology. Through all of this, Cassie continued to go to work where she helps children with autism build social and life skills.
After two weeks of waiting, Cassie heard that it was cancer.
Difficult Decisions
Cassie has always prioritized her family. Her many siblings, her parents, her nephew. She has always hoped of one day having a family just as big and full of love, but this news changed that dream permanently. In the pursuit of saving her dreams of motherhood, Cassie made appointments with a fertility clinic to better understand the possibility of freezing eggs. An already expensive prospect that wouldn’t be covered by health insurance, Cassie had big, life altering decisions to make.
Through a few days of tearful conversations with loved ones, pros and cons lists, and a bit of chocolate, Cassie decided not to go through fertility treatments. At 29 years old it was difficult to give up on having children biologically, but the expense and delay to treating the cancer would only make her journey more difficult in the long run.
Treatment and Beyond
On August 27th, Cassie will be having surgery. She will be having a hysterectomy, having her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed and a sentinel dissection of a lymph node to be sure the cancer hasn’t spread further. The recovery will take six to eight weeks, during which she will not be paid by her employer and will be hoping to still move into her own apartment like she planned to before being diagnosed.
Through this journey Cassie has accumulated over $3,000 in medical bills and will be losing out on at least $5,000 of wages from her work in early childhood mental health services. We are asking for help to cover Cassie’s current losses and help boost her in anticipation of future medical bills related to preventative cancer screening. We truly would appreciate any help as well as your positive thoughts and prayers during the difficult time.
Organizer and beneficiary
Kate Lynch
Organizer
Owatonna, MN
Cassie Kubicek
Beneficiary