Help Michael Fay Find Cure for "Incurable" Cancer

Michael Fay is organizing this fundraiser.

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To my Family and Friends:

I’m Michael Fay, 45, married to my best friend for more than half of my life and proud dad to my three beautiful and talented little ladies. I write this, still in disbelief, as I digest this new and scary chapter in my life. Just ten days before Christmas, after a routine annual physical, having no signs or symptoms, I was diagnosed with a very rare form of cancer affecting only 200k people living with it in the US today.

I’d be lying if I said the news didn’t stop me dead in my tracks. It’s been emotional for me, my family and close friends, but I’ve also been blessed with an outpouring of love and support from so many people in so many ways. I can’t thank you all enough. It gives me the strength I need as I look ahead with a somewhat foggy picture of what to expect having still so many unanswered questions and appointments that remain.

On 12/21 and 12/22 I had back to back appointments in New York City. Both doctors from Memorial Sloan Kettering and Weill-Cornell said the same thing; “It’s not curable, unfortunately, but it is treatable to try to slow the progression of the disease.” I learned I have what is called SLL/CLL (small lymphocytic lymphoma/chronic lymphocytic leukemia), which is a very rare blood and lymph cancer that only affects 1 in 2000 people under the age of 55 in the US each year. Hearing that was a kick in the gut. I will need treatment, not immediately, but once it starts taking over/increasing the size of more lymph nodes and affecting my daily life. I am still waiting for results of genetics and blood work to see how aggressive it is, which will then determine when to start/what type of treatment I’ll need to put it into remission for a few years and then start all over again.

The best possible outcome is that I’ll be considered low risk as far as the genetics go. That will then affect prognosis and living with it for a longer period of time. I guess it’s as good as I can hope for when given a cancer diagnosis that as of today, remains without a cure. I’m incredibly strong and will fight with everything I have for what I hope to be a very long time in hopes they can find a cure at some point for me to see it. This has given me even more reason to treat every day as a greater gift and not sweat the small stuff. I encourage you all reading this to do the same. I intend to fight an incurable cancer and contribute how I can to help find a cure. Working for Johnson and Johnson for the past 15 years I’ve seen first-hand that there are no limits to what’s possible beyond what may have once seemed impossible. I remain hopeful, optimistic and strong for the road ahead and hope to have even more clarity after follow up appointments towards the end of January.

I’ve had a lot of people asking what they can do or how they can help me which is what drove me to set this up. If you’d like to do so, here’s how:

If you are reading this, I’d like to ask for a $1 donation, or whatever you are comfortable contributing. Then please share this within whatever social network or platform you use. My goal is to get 200k people, which represents the number of people currently living with this form of cancer in the US, to see this. And to raise more awareness to SLL/CLL and the importance of going for your annual physical. Had my Nurse Practitioner not checked my neck during what was supposed to be a routine exam, another year would have passed with no knowledge of this cancer festering inside of me. I believe through the power of social media, if everyone seeing this can share it, anything is possible.

I intend to use funds raised to help find better treatments and contribute towards finding a cure - while I'm here to see it! I’d be very grateful to whatever it is that you can do, be it sharing my story, keeping me and my family in your thoughts and prayers, some type of donation, or all of the above.

Wishing you and your families a happy and HEALTHY 2024!

With my deepest gratitude,

- Michael Fay