Help Cora Van Winkle(Monica Batley) battle cancer

Hi, My name is Cora Van Winkle, recently changed from Monica Batley as part of my journey with cancer. A little about me, I'm a mental health therapist and obtained my license in October of 2018. Shortly after, in March of 2019, I was diagnosed with colorectal cancer at the age of 37. Due to the location of my cancer, I went through 8 cycles of chemotherapy, 28 days of radiation with oral chemotherapy, open surgery to remove the tumor and install a temporary ileostomy, and finally a reversal of my ileostomy in March of 2020. It was a fascinating year, and I felt lucky to have such wonderful medical treatment available.

In September of 2020, I took my dream job working in a residential mental health treatment center with teenagers. A few weeks later, I would be diagnosed with stage 4 colorectal cancer with two metastases to my liver. I went through another six rounds of chemotherapy before two surgeons in my town told me I was incurable and offered an ablation of the areas of my liver. I sought a third opinion at MD Anderson, and although they also recommended ablation, they were confident their ablation would be as successful as surgery in offering me a cure. I underwent another six cycles of chemotherapy and ablation to my liver. In June of 2021, I was done with treatment.

I began working again. However, there continued to be a small spot on my lung that was too small to biopsy. In June of 2022, a biopsy confirmed that this spot was another tumor from my colorectal cancer. Unfortunately, it is attached to my chest wall and very close to my heart, making it necessary for me to do chemotherapy again before surgery. I expect at least three months of chemotherapy before checking to see if surgery is an option.

While I love my work, my body is still in recovery from my past treatments, and I made the difficult decision to apply for disability and take a leave of absence to fight this thing off. Hopefully for good. There will be a waiting period for disability during which I am seeking assistance to help pay my essential bills. I will also have to travel from Oklahoma City to Houston at least twice, once for a three-month consultation with the surgeon and then for surgery. I will also need to stay in Houston after surgery for a period. I have accrued significant debt while trying to work through my past treatments. I hope that if I can remain healthy, I will return to work full time and repay what has been generously given to me.

Thank you in advance for sharing or donating. I have been so lucky to have a vibrant, supportive group of people helping me, keeping me on their prayer chains or in their positive thoughts, and offering to assist me. I understand that many of us at this time are not able to help donate or provide financial assistance. While goFundme may be a financial request, no value can be placed on the emotional support I've received and needed over the past several years. As I always say, I love you!