Let's Help Michelle Defeat Cancer Once & for All!
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My mom, Michelle, is one of the strongest, most selfless, and most determined people I know. For over five years—while continuing to work and while raising three kids—she has fought a series of difficult health battles, with her fair share of victories and setbacks. Throughout it all, she has endured while keeping an incredibly inspiring mindset and positive outlook.
During this season of giving, my family and I hope that you can contribute to helping fund my mom’s Insulin Potentiation Therapy (IPT) cancer treatments and other life-saving medical expenses. We understand that this year has been extraordinarily difficult for everyone, so any little bit that you’re able to contribute will be SO much appreciated.
Her Health Battles
My mom received her first cancer diagnosis in the summer of 2015. This came about two years after she suffered a serious rib fracture (which caused a lot of pain, stress, and bills for multiple ongoing therapies), and the news completely shook our entire family. I had just finished my first year of college, and my brother and sister were in high school and middle school. Fortunately caught when it was, the then early-stage breast cancer was able to be treated with lumpectomies, for which she traveled to a laser surgery specialist in New York. She was considered cancer-free in early 2016, and she set out on an all-encompassing health journey of preventative measures, including dietary restrictions (absolutely no sugars, alcohol, or other unhealthy foods) and natural supplements, steady exercise, and a lesser work-load to decrease her stress levels. She seemed as healthy and strong as could be—practically erasing any worries that I or the rest of my family had for her health.
Unfortunately, in 2018, her cancer reemerged. It started in the spring with a recurrence of her rib injury, and then she caught Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Although the cell mutations caused by this infection have been known to aggravate cancerous changes or autoimmune disorders, the EBV seemed to affect her much more severely than most, suggesting that something else was going on. She had trouble breathing and it turned out that her lung had actually collapsed. As she was being treated, the doctors ran tests on the fluid they extracted from around her lungs. In addition to spreading to her lungs, they found that the cancer had metastasized from the breasts to multiple other areas of the body, including her bones—categorizing it as Stage 4.
Since then, my mom has had radiation treatments to work on the cancer in her bones; it helped with the excruciating pain she was experiencing, but also resulted in tremendous nausea, weight loss, and fatigue. To help strengthen her immune system and make it more capable of fighting against the cancer, she has also used ozone-oxygenated blood therapies, medical cannabis, high-dose vitamin-C IVs, and more over the years. Although some of these treatments are considered “alternative,” they have all helped mitigate her pain and increase her optimism and energy significantly.
Earlier this year, we had another major scare: my mom was hospitalized for a serious case of pneumonia and a near-diabetic coma (which was a side effect of one of the cancer drugs she was on). Because this occurred in the early months of the pandemic, she not only had no visitors but also had to worry about catching coronavirus during her two-week stay. On top of all this, an MRI scan also helped the doctors discover a cancerous mass on the pituitary gland of my mom’s brain. Some complications in treatment that increased her sodium levels almost led to a brain hernia.
Luckily, she was able to start radiation right away, which successfully eliminated that mass in her brain. She has been continuing to live with her cancer in a somewhat stable state thanks to various drug therapies. Though there has been much to celebrate in terms of improvement (like no increases in breast or bone tumors, plus recently being cancer-free in her lungs), my mom has had to deal with hair loss, ongoing discomfort, and inflammation—and there are still increasing growths on her liver. It has become clear to her, her oncologist, her naturopath, and her other practitioners that in order for all her other therapies to have a chance at working, she needs to undergo some chemotherapy.
The Battle Plan
To avoid the negative side effects of traditional, full-force chemo, my mom is lucky to have the option to undergo comprehensive cancer care. In addition to continuing her nutritional regimen (diet and supplements for immune support) and mind-body healing therapies (meditation, affirmations, and prayer to help manage the stress associated with illness), she will also be treated with low-dose chemotherapy (administered via the technique of Insulin Potentiation Therapy ). IPT is an alternative to traditional methods and uses nearly 90% less chemo to destroy cancer cells by introducing insulin into the body to help highlight the cancer cells and enhance the absorption of the chemotherapy; plus it causes little to none of the negative side effects such as risk of infection, anemia, loss of appetite, nausea, hair loss, and mental/physical fatigue.
As was often the case with many of the other treatments my mom has undergone since her first diagnosis, we were told that this will probably have to be paid mostly or entirely out-of-pocket. Because this targeted therapy is a newer form of chemotherapy, it is not yet covered by insurance companies. Today is her second treatment, and her doctors have advised that she do 12 total treatments over nine weeks—each one costing around $1,500.
Obviously, this is a huge but necessary financial strain. All conventional and non-conventional treatments she has undergone have come with a cost, and the value of IPT is that it will help ensure that all her other treatments and therapies can do their jobs and ultimately defeat this terrible disease.
To cover these 12 treatments, help with day-to-day expenses, and any additional unforeseen costs, my family and I are hoping to raise $20,000.
My parents are both getting close to their retirement years, and are currently helping two children finish college. My mom has continued working (even sometimes DURING her hospital stays) and has never asked for any help to cover her medical expenses over the past five years. So, to ease the financial burden for her and my dad and to take away any added stress during this crucial time, it would be so amazing to be able to raise this money. Our entire family wants to help her be 100% cancer-free so that she can get back to enjoying life, and we’d be so grateful to anyone who donates to make this a reality.
Thank you,
Alicia & Family
During this season of giving, my family and I hope that you can contribute to helping fund my mom’s Insulin Potentiation Therapy (IPT) cancer treatments and other life-saving medical expenses. We understand that this year has been extraordinarily difficult for everyone, so any little bit that you’re able to contribute will be SO much appreciated.
Her Health Battles
My mom received her first cancer diagnosis in the summer of 2015. This came about two years after she suffered a serious rib fracture (which caused a lot of pain, stress, and bills for multiple ongoing therapies), and the news completely shook our entire family. I had just finished my first year of college, and my brother and sister were in high school and middle school. Fortunately caught when it was, the then early-stage breast cancer was able to be treated with lumpectomies, for which she traveled to a laser surgery specialist in New York. She was considered cancer-free in early 2016, and she set out on an all-encompassing health journey of preventative measures, including dietary restrictions (absolutely no sugars, alcohol, or other unhealthy foods) and natural supplements, steady exercise, and a lesser work-load to decrease her stress levels. She seemed as healthy and strong as could be—practically erasing any worries that I or the rest of my family had for her health.
Unfortunately, in 2018, her cancer reemerged. It started in the spring with a recurrence of her rib injury, and then she caught Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Although the cell mutations caused by this infection have been known to aggravate cancerous changes or autoimmune disorders, the EBV seemed to affect her much more severely than most, suggesting that something else was going on. She had trouble breathing and it turned out that her lung had actually collapsed. As she was being treated, the doctors ran tests on the fluid they extracted from around her lungs. In addition to spreading to her lungs, they found that the cancer had metastasized from the breasts to multiple other areas of the body, including her bones—categorizing it as Stage 4.
Since then, my mom has had radiation treatments to work on the cancer in her bones; it helped with the excruciating pain she was experiencing, but also resulted in tremendous nausea, weight loss, and fatigue. To help strengthen her immune system and make it more capable of fighting against the cancer, she has also used ozone-oxygenated blood therapies, medical cannabis, high-dose vitamin-C IVs, and more over the years. Although some of these treatments are considered “alternative,” they have all helped mitigate her pain and increase her optimism and energy significantly.
Earlier this year, we had another major scare: my mom was hospitalized for a serious case of pneumonia and a near-diabetic coma (which was a side effect of one of the cancer drugs she was on). Because this occurred in the early months of the pandemic, she not only had no visitors but also had to worry about catching coronavirus during her two-week stay. On top of all this, an MRI scan also helped the doctors discover a cancerous mass on the pituitary gland of my mom’s brain. Some complications in treatment that increased her sodium levels almost led to a brain hernia.
Luckily, she was able to start radiation right away, which successfully eliminated that mass in her brain. She has been continuing to live with her cancer in a somewhat stable state thanks to various drug therapies. Though there has been much to celebrate in terms of improvement (like no increases in breast or bone tumors, plus recently being cancer-free in her lungs), my mom has had to deal with hair loss, ongoing discomfort, and inflammation—and there are still increasing growths on her liver. It has become clear to her, her oncologist, her naturopath, and her other practitioners that in order for all her other therapies to have a chance at working, she needs to undergo some chemotherapy.
The Battle Plan
To avoid the negative side effects of traditional, full-force chemo, my mom is lucky to have the option to undergo comprehensive cancer care. In addition to continuing her nutritional regimen (diet and supplements for immune support) and mind-body healing therapies (meditation, affirmations, and prayer to help manage the stress associated with illness), she will also be treated with low-dose chemotherapy (administered via the technique of Insulin Potentiation Therapy ). IPT is an alternative to traditional methods and uses nearly 90% less chemo to destroy cancer cells by introducing insulin into the body to help highlight the cancer cells and enhance the absorption of the chemotherapy; plus it causes little to none of the negative side effects such as risk of infection, anemia, loss of appetite, nausea, hair loss, and mental/physical fatigue.
As was often the case with many of the other treatments my mom has undergone since her first diagnosis, we were told that this will probably have to be paid mostly or entirely out-of-pocket. Because this targeted therapy is a newer form of chemotherapy, it is not yet covered by insurance companies. Today is her second treatment, and her doctors have advised that she do 12 total treatments over nine weeks—each one costing around $1,500.
Obviously, this is a huge but necessary financial strain. All conventional and non-conventional treatments she has undergone have come with a cost, and the value of IPT is that it will help ensure that all her other treatments and therapies can do their jobs and ultimately defeat this terrible disease.
To cover these 12 treatments, help with day-to-day expenses, and any additional unforeseen costs, my family and I are hoping to raise $20,000.
My parents are both getting close to their retirement years, and are currently helping two children finish college. My mom has continued working (even sometimes DURING her hospital stays) and has never asked for any help to cover her medical expenses over the past five years. So, to ease the financial burden for her and my dad and to take away any added stress during this crucial time, it would be so amazing to be able to raise this money. Our entire family wants to help her be 100% cancer-free so that she can get back to enjoying life, and we’d be so grateful to anyone who donates to make this a reality.
Thank you,
Alicia & Family
Organizer and beneficiary
Alicia Dutkiewicz
Organizer
Chicago, IL
Michelle Dutkiewicz
Beneficiary