Mitzy Romero's Cancer Bills, IVF, & Wedding Fund

I am starting a GoFundMe for my amazing fiancé Mitzy Romero. We have had a very difficult year and she deserves the world. This past January, Mitzy was diagnosed with Stage 4 non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. What doctors had previously told us were ulcers were in fact a massive tumor in her stomach lining and several smaller tumors in her lower abdomen.

Mitzy is a caring, fun, outgoing and loving person who cares deeply for her family and friends. She is a Behavioral Analyst and typically works with children who have special needs such as Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, Down Syndrome, and other comorbidities. For the last 10 years, Mitzy has been a beacon of hope, compassion, and inspiration, working tirelessly to make a positive impact on the lives of these children and their families.

As a result of the cancer, Mitzy couldn't eat without immediately throwing up and she couldn't sleep because of how intense the pain was. We spent weeks sleeping together on the couch because it was the only place she could prop-up pillows to cushion her body (and tumor) to try and relieve some of her sufferings. She has spent many nights in Emergency Room beds due to infections caused by the effects of chemotherapy on her immune system. It has been difficult for her to do any kind of physical activity, and even a walk around the block was a long trip that most days seemed impossible.

Medical bills have been significant. We've had to pay tens of thousands of dollars for scans, chemotherapy, home medications, doctor appointments, E.R. stays, weekly blood tests, and more. Mitzy has currently finished 6 cycles of chemotherapy and is waiting to begin radiation treatment. The upcoming radiation treatments will be expensive, and Mitzy is guaranteed doctor's appointments, blood tests, and scans, at least every 6 months for the next 5 years of her life.

We also planned to have children in the next few years, but chemotherapy destroys a woman's eggs as a side effect. We harvested Mitzy's eggs in the hope that when all of this is over we can have children together and Mitzy can become the amazing mother she was always meant to be. It was several thousand dollars to harvest the eggs, and we expect it will cost more than $10,000 to do the In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF) when Mitzy is healthy enough to attempt it.

On top of all that, in the fall of last year, I left my career of 15 years in restaurants to go back to school and also to spend more time together as a family. I have spent the past year working in both Special Ed and General Ed classrooms, and I am on my way to earning my degree in Elementary Education and becoming a teacher. However, the timing could not have been worse. Mitzy has been unable to work since January, and our plan of being able to rely mostly on Mitzy's income while I complete my degree is no longer possible.

Despite the hardships she has faced, Mitzy's spirit and determination have not wavered. As she nears the end of her cancer treatment, we are looking forward to getting married in September, a milestone that signifies a new chapter for her filled with love, joy, and her family. We've had to significantly reduce our wedding plans and now hope to have a small wedding with only family and close friends, but even with the tightest budget we still expect to spend more than $5,000. As you can imagine, getting married in the Bay Area is not a cheap endeavor.

I am posting this request in the hopes of giving Mitzy a small part of what she has always wanted. Facing cancer head-on has only strengthened our relationship and increased our desire to marry each other and have a wedding surrounded by our loved ones. We want to be able to start the IVF process as soon as her doctor clears her, in about two years, so that we can raise a child (or children!) together as a family. We hope to someday have a home together, with jobs where we both get to work with children and help them develop. Please consider donating to our dreams, we are grateful for any help you might give and every little bit helps.

With Love,

Mitzy and Brian