Support Brad's Battle Against a Rare Form of Cancer

On April 2nd Brad had a surgery to remove a mass in his abdomen, then on April 5th Brad was diagnosed with T4 tumor, cancer of the appendix, also known as a Mucinous Adenocarcinoma (MAC). This type of cancer is considered aggressive, and has a high recurrence rate. It can also be hard to detect because the cells divide slowly and symptoms are so gradual. In addition to traditional chemotherapy that will be administered every 2 weeks, Brad will visit KU Med to work with a specialist in gastrointestinal cancers.

Funds raised will be used to help with the 85,000 of accrued medical bills, extensive time missed at work due to chemo, travels to and from KU Med and any testing or expenses not covered by insurance. Every dollar matters.

Donations can also be made directly to Brad Lee and mailed to Mid America Bank @ 1200 West Stadium, Ste 100. Jefferson City MO 65109

More of the story…from Day 1

February 27th: Brad went to the ER to figure out what was causing his gradually worsening discomfort, abdominal pain, and recent fever. After the longest emergency room wait in history, he was taken to CT, and at first glance told that his appendix had ruptured. Another look said that was not the case as he was not progressively getting more sick as a rupture would entail. The surgeon on call came in to let us ( Brad and Amy) know the best course of action was to insert a drain in the abdomen to get rid of fluid that had collected and monitor symptoms, as well as get another CT.

February 28th: Drain was inserted with the goal of eliminating fluid and reducing the chance of any infection. Spent the day in the hospital to control pain and ensure no fever.

February 29th: After the third CT scan of our visit, it was determined there was a mass of fluid near or on the appendix, in addition to what had collected in the abdomen. But there was not a lot of change in size of mass despite the drain. Our surgeon gave us two options...-go into surgery and let her try to clean up the issue from the inside. OR-go home with drain in place to see if the mass would shrink and give option for a possible laparoscopic procedure in a few days.Brad went home with the drain for the next several days in hopes to avoid major abdominal surgery.

March 6th:Just over a week after the ER trip, another CT scan was done to check the progress of the drain. Doc was not impressed with the amount of shrinkage but said she would try laparoscopic first in hopes she could get the appendix and mass out. The drain was removed and laparoscopic surgery scheduled for the next day.

March 7th: Laparoscopic surgery was unsuccessful, the surgeon could not get to the appendix. She found pockets of Mucinous fluid all throughout the abdomen, covering appendix, on liver and on the colon. She took several samples for pathology but opted not to remove the appendix because she could not clearly see it or get to it. Samples were sent to the lab and the next step was a colonoscopy to see if the cause of the fluid or pain could be found there. Pathology came back negative for any malignancy from surgical samples.

March 12: Colonoscopy was successful, there were no issues here. More samples were taken to send to the lab and again came back negative for malignancy. At this point another biopsy was scheduled in a week in order to get samples from the mass on the appendix itself. This biopsy was done on 3/25, and also showed no signs of cancer cells. Abdominal surgery to remove the mass was set for one week away.

April 2nd: Despite efforts to avoid getting cut open, the mass had to come out. The plan was to take the tumor along with the appendix and part of the colon that was attached. That part of the surgery was successful, and the Doc was pleased with the margins, but not thrilled she was unable to remove all of the Mucinous fluid still present. Doing so would possibly damage the organs it was attached to and not worth the risk at this time. All of the tumor and organs taken out were sent to pathology. After a 2 day hospital stay and bit of a rough recovery initially, Brad was sent home post surgery to heal up and rest. He was back on his feet in a matter of days enjoying the Spring weather and firing up the grill. Unfortunately, the most recent post surgical path report did show malignant cells present within the appendix. At this point we were directed to an oncologist for next steps.

April 9th: We met for the first time with an Oncologist at Goldschmidt Cancer Center. An official diagnosis (best as I can translate it) was T4 tumor, cancer of the appendix, also known as a Mucinous Adenocarcinoma (MAC). This is considered an aggressive type of cancer with a high recurrence rate. It can also be hard to detect because the cells divide slowly and symptoms are so gradual. So although our surgeon believed to have removed all of the tumor, chemotherapy is considered a must at this point. Our Doc gave us an outline of what he thought Chemo would probably look like for Brad, and because this type of cancer is fairly rare, without a lot of clinical trials in place for treatment, the typical protocol looks like that of someone who has colon cancer. More labs were drawn and additional tests will take place over the next several days to confirm docs theory on treatment, which will begin in coming weeks.

Brad referred to a specialist at KU Med who will consult with Brad to decide if he is a candidate for another abdominal surgery specifically to remove the Mucinous fluid left behind, this is the only type of cancer this Dr works with and his best chance at minimizing recurrence along with chemo. This appointment is to happen in the coming days to determine next steps.

Chemotherapy will begin in coming weeks as well, Brad will get a port through an outpatient procedure to administer the treatment every 2 weeks.

Most importantly Brad and Amy his wonderful wife- need your prayers. Please pray for the Lord to guide and direct all medical professionals involved in all procedures.. there is much unknown at this time. This has taken them by surprise.. but we know our Lord is not surprised and has them in His Hands. They are confident that their Savior has Brad in His loving hands.

"Do not fear, for I am with you;

Do not be afraid, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you, I will also help you,

I will also uphold you with My righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10