Cancer for Christmas

Not the Christmas we were expecting…

Hi, my name is Ruth and I am fundraisng for my adult daughter, Jennifer Gagliardi Mertzic, who unexpectedly accrued massive medical bills over the holidays. Jen is separated after nearly 20 years of marriage and is working hard to create a life of her own. She has a job working for a photography company and found herself an inexpensive but cute rental for her own. Up to this point Jen has not been able to afford her own health insurance. She has paid out of pocket for routine visits, but now things are serious and we are asking for help. My hope in telling Jen’s story is to help relieve her financial burden as she heals and manages her feelings of loss

The unexpected text on Dec. 23rd

Jen was preparing to host Christmas Eve dinner for family, but those plans went sideways. She was feeling horrible all day, vomiting and having what she thought was an over active period. By 9:30pm the night of December 23rd, Jen text me “Mommy, help.” I asked whats wrong and immediately called. She said she could not get up, that she had been hemorrhaging, that there was blood everywhere, “I don’t know what to do.” Her voice was very faint.

We live in Raleigh, an hour away from her place in, so her brother who was home for Christmas, called 911, asking that an ambulance be sent, while I stayed on the line with Jen until someone arrived. Jen was so scared and embarrassed for anyone to see her in that condition. Once the ambulance arrived I had to hang up. I could tell she was very weak and I was frantic. My son and his wife had already left for Central Carolina Hospital in Sanford, my husband and I were right behind.

Saving a life in the ER

The emergency room was very busy and short staffed due to Covid and Christmas, but once they had Jen into a room the ER staff immediately focused on her. She had lost so much blood that she was truly at deaths door. I was the only one allowed inside and that is where I stayed, tucked in a corner watching and praying. Her blood pressure was sitting at 94/52. All the nurses, doctors and other staff that worked on Jen were wonderful and kind.

They worked tirelessly to stop the bleeding stopped and stabilize her blood pressure. Jen was on antibiotic drips to fight sepsis, drugs to slow down the blood, fluids to keep her hydrated and blood transfusions. First one, then two, and two more after that. Multiple blood tests were done, though it was difficult to find locations to draw blood. Tests for diabetes, lung issues, kidney problems, an EKG all showed no problems. Several doctors passed through the ER to talk to her which was difficult, as she kept falling asleep. The OB doctor had mentioned a hysterectomy was a possibility.

It took from 10pm that night of the 23rd, into midday Christmas Eve before she became stable enough that they could think about moving her. It took until 6pm Christmas Eve to find her a bed in ICU.

Next step of the journey

Her dad and I were both able to visit in ICU, albeit one at a time. While in the ICU the nurses provided much of the same monitoring as in the ER and the OBGYN doctors were conferring about her case and what the next steps would be. Her bleeding was still not under control and she received three more units of blood in the iCU (in total 7 units). Once they were able, they made the decision to do an abdominal hysterectomy. They explaining to Jen that if they found any cancer they would remove everything, but if not they would leave the ovaries. This was the first anyone had mentioned cancer, not something any of us had expected to hear. Surgery was scheduled for Dec 27th.

Cancer found during surgery

Surgery went without any major complications, but they found cancer. Everything was removed in an effort to remove all the cancer (cancer protocol) and further scrapings were done. All of this has been sent to pathology to check for more possible cancer. The doctor explained all this to Jen and her dad and I after the surgery. They also explained that test results would take more time then normal due to the holiday weekend and staffing shortages.

Jen spent an hour in recovery before being moved to OB labor ward for further recovery, where she stayed three days before being discharged. The irony was not lost on us, that the only other time Jen was in a hospital was when she delivered a 36 week stillborn baby girl. She was so ready to leave when the discharge was ready, but grateful for all care the nurses had provided.

At Home

At present Jen is at home recovering from the surgery. I am staying with her until the staples from her incision are removed and she can move about on her own more freely. Her body is healing quickly though recovery still remains at six week.

At this time we still do not have the pathology tests, but hope to very soon.

Special thank you to the Central Carolina Hospital folks

We would like to thank CCH nurses and doctors who through this Holiday time worked tirelessly to stabilize and figure out what the problem was with Jen. They were all awesome - kind, gentle, supportive, and straight forward with Jen and parents. We appreciate all that they did.

Thank you for your help!

We are grateful that Jen was able to receive the emergency medical cate that she needed and that she will recover. But we also know that the medical care she received will be expensive. Any donations will go towards hospital and medical bills. Thank you to those that are willing and able to help Jen. I will post regular updates to let you know how Jen is doing.