Help Holly get the treatment she needs

Hi, my name is Denise and I am raising money for my wonderful friend of 30 years, Holly. In 2022 after seeking repeated medical support and following misdiagnosis, Holly was diagnosed with a very rare and aggressive form of thyroid cancer.

This was only after Holly had sought support via a private assessment and surgery to remove her thyroid as she felt that something was 'wrong,' despite being told otherwise. Sadly, by this time, the thyroid cancer had already metastasised to her lungs and was therefore classed as stage 4 from the outset.

Since this diagnosis Holly has tried to manage the disease in private and to the best of her abilities. As an ex teacher and headteacher she was awarded early release of her teacher pension, however, she has already had to use this to pay privately for treatment and therapies including Dendritic Cell Therapy.

A focus for Holly over the last year has been looking after all aspects of her health including her mind, body and spirit and this has been extremely important to her.

In September, Holly travelled to Florida in the US after being given the go ahead to participate in a meditation retreat. Sadly, whilst in Florida she became increasingly unwell. She sought medical help and Holly received the devastating news the cancer had metastasised further to her brain. She had brain surgery 2 weeks ago to remove two brain tumours. The cancer in her lungs has progressed rapidly in this time.

She was unable to fly home so began a 5-day journey overland with her sister from Florida to Houston to MD Anderson hospital, the world centre for excellence for this type of cancer. She is now in MD Anderson, receiving the most outstanding care, however, none of this comes cheap. All of her life savings and teacher pension have been spent paying for the treatment to date.

Costs for this in the US are enormous. Prior to her trip to the US Holly thought she had made adequate insurance provision for the trip, however at this stage it appears this is not the case.

To date she has received no financial assistance and is totally self-funding her treatment with support from her beautiful family. However, this has now become impossible to sustain. In addition, the US system means costs often have to be paid in advance.

Next week she hopes to start active treatment as her disease is progressing. It will start with 2 forms of radiation in the US and then hopefully she will be allowed to fly home to the UK to continue further therapies.

Sadly, existing immunotherapy used in the USA to treat this rare form of thyroid cancer is not available on the NHS (although it is used for other cancers in the UK). Again she will need to pay privately for this on her return home to the UK.

Since her diagnosis Holly has been fiercely private and has kept most of what she has been going through to a close circle of family and friends. She has tried to protect her children as much as possible from it all. She finds it very hard to ask for financial help and this is not something she is comfortable with. However, we have to be realistic - practically speaking we are left with no choice now and the financial stress of the situation is having a very negative impact on her ability to focus her energies where they are most needed.

We would really appreciate any support you would be able to afford, Kierkegaard once said 'To dare is to lose one's footings momentarily. Not to dare is to lose oneself.'

Despite the size of the challenge ahead of her, Holly refuses to give up. This is not who she is. She remains emotionally strong. Life can be tough but it can also be rich and beautiful and Holly has been overwhelmed by the love and kindness that has been bestowed upon her since she arrived in the US. She firmly believes in the face of adversity that we have to keep going, never giving up hope.

Anyone who knows Holly knows what an amazing, strong, and inspirational woman she is and one who has spent her whole life giving to others. Now it is time to ask for a little help to get her home to her wonderful girls and ease the immediate burden of extreme financial pressure she currently faces as a result of paying for treatment in the US.

Any donations you can give however small will be so gratefully received and we can't thank you enough for your support.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.