COMING HOME !!!

✨ October Update: Coming Home ✨

To our amazing family and friends — your never-ending support and love still leave me in awe. We are truly shaken (in the best way) by the kindness we have received and continue to receive. Life is amazing, life is gracious, and we are so grateful for all of you. ❤️

Back in May, Michael was able to return to Texas with his family and spend a few days with Melissa. They even managed to have some fun together! He has since been cleared by his doctor to return to full duty at the Pawtucket Fire Department — such wonderful news.

Melissa is now completing her final appointments at MD Anderson and Houston Methodist. She will be returning to Rhode Island in early October with Brian and their two cats . We are beyond excited to welcome them back to New England!

In just three months, this journey will have been two years in the making. Texas will always hold a place in our lives — both as a memory and as part of Melissa’s healing story. She is doing well and managing the side effects of her targeted therapy with such strength and grace.

She will need to return to Texas in February for her one-year post-transplant checkup — a huge milestone on this journey. That trip will also mark the two-year and three-month point since this all began. She will have to travel back again to Texas in February of 2027 as well. We are hopeful that, after this, most of her follow-up visits can be done virtually, so she can truly continue building her life back here at home. ❤️

This past year has been a major undertaking, filled with every emotion — from sheer terror to laughter, and with deep moments of spirituality in between. Through it all, your love and support have carried us.

We are in the final steps of moving their life back from Texas to Rhode Island and transitioning her care back to Boston, with so much help from so many of you. We cannot begin to express how grateful we are to E & J for your incredible presence in Melissa’s life and ours, and for helping them transition back to their Newport apartment. ❤️

And to OHF — thank you for literally saving Melissa’s life with your complete support and care.

To all of you: we see you, we hear you, we pray for you. You have been our heroes and our prayer warriors every step of the way. Please continue to keep Melissa in your prayers — especially that future scans remain clear. ❤️

We hold on to hope, we lean on prayer, and we walk forward with love.

With love,

Mindy

SUCCESSFUL TRANSPLANT‼️‼️

When I look at these beautiful faces, I think of all of you and all of the love and support that you’ve given us throughout this cancer and transplant journey.

Melissa is doing well. She’s been home from the hospital and recovering at a good pace . It was a pretty rough ride for her for those 40 days.

She had some complications , a leak in her liver, fluid buildup, needing a drainage tube, they needed to insert a biliary stent , she ended up with sepsis and a mild liver rejection.

Melissa is a fighter and she held in there . She went home without her drainage tube and is feeling well and stable. Her and Brian are resuming their life in Texas while Melissa continues to recover. They are back to hiking and some of their other normal activities.❤️

They will be in Texas until October. Melissa has many follow-ups with her surgeon and bloodwork every week. She will have scans every three months.

She also sees her oncologist.

She is back on her Pemigatinib , a targeted cancer drug for her specific genetic mutation (FGFR2).

She is one of the first patients to have this particular therapy pre-and post transplant . This is a precautionary measure ,due to her liver having active tumor when they removed it. The drug will target any potential rogue cancer cells.❤️

Mike is also doing well. He went back to work light duty shortly after he got back from Texas. He has been regaining his strength and feeling well.

He will be traveling back to Texas in a few weeks for his bloodwork and scans. We are hoping to see a fully healed and grown liver .

I am so proud of both of my children for enduring what they did and for the courage Michael had to help his sister in this life-saving way. I’m blown away by the strength of Kate and Jax for their love, support and courage in bringing Mike through this.❤️ Also , Brians amazing love and support for Melissa and his constant encouragement and lets not forget Simba❤️

My prayers of thanks go out to all of you every day for your own health and happiness and for your enduring support and amazing friendships.❤️ Prays for my family for all the love and encouragement.❤️

I look at Melissa now and I look at Mike , I am so truly grateful for the grace of God and the fact that he put so many people in our paths that made climbing this mountain possible

♾️ ❤️ ♾️

May God Bless you abundantly ❤️

Go Fund me for Mike Conlon

Dear Friends, Mike is a Match!

I am Mike's mom, Mindy and here is our story.

We need to raise funds for Mike to be able to take the leave and care he needs to fulfill his place as a living donor.

As most of you already know, Mike's younger sister Melissa was diagnosed with Stage 4, inoperable Cholangiocarcinoma (bile duct cancer). This is a rare and aggressive cancer with rapid growth. Therefore, time is of the essence.

Melissa has been battling this cancer since November of 2023, she has had a year of therapies and procedures at Dana Farber Cancer Center. This October, Melissa and her family (fiancé Brian and Cat Simba) moved from Newport RI to Houston Texas to have further therapies at MD Anderson. Amazingly, this November, a year to the date of her cancer diagnosis she officially became “Listed” for a liver transplant at Houston Methodist. While she is on the deceased donor list, we held a campaign for a living donor donation. She is very loved, multiple selfless people signed up to be evaluated to become possible donors, including her siblings.

Mike was chosen as the best 1st candidate to be evaluated. He and his wife Kate flew to Texas a week before Christmas for 2 ½ days of an extensive evaluation process and testing. A few days after Christmas, Mike got the call that he is indeed a donor match with Melissa!

We are so proud of Mike for his incredible sacrifice to his sister. He will be giving Melissa a portion of his liver. This act of love and bravery will give Melissa a new chance on Life! We raised a hero!

Mike is a protective and loving big brother. You get lost in his hugs; you feel safe. Mike is a reliable, loving husband to his wife Kate and an amazing Dad to his son, Jaxon (he will be 6 soon). Mike is always there for his friends and coworkers (his other family) He’s made so many close and trusted friends throughout his own journey in life as a Firefighter. He will go out of his way to help anyone. We all love him so much and as Jax said to me the other night “I am scared, but I know my dad is a hero and he is going to save Auntie Max with his liver”

Both Mike and Kate have made their home recently in Seekonk, MA with their son Jaxon and their two dogs Charlie and Rebel.

They will have to leave Jax and the pets at home. Your support will help with the costs that they will incur both, maintaining their home in Seekonk and settling up a new temporary home in Houston.

Melissa’s insurance is covering Mike's evaluation process, surgery, hospital stay, after care and any procedures pertaining to the liver donation.

Why we need the GFM

Insurance doesn’t cover travel, accommodations, rental car, gas, food and some of the later aftercare. There is a lot of planning to do.

Mike has flown to Houston TX already for his medical evaluation.

Mike must fly down at the end of January for his pre-admission testing.

Mike needs to live in Texas from the end of January until about March 8th

We need to rent a family size house or Airbnb for that time.

Our family will fly down for surgery and be caregivers afterward, this means Kate must stay for Mike. Kim and I need to stay for Melissa (we will also rotate down to Texas for aftercare. Something we had to agree to do (with the transplant teams) for at least one-month post-transplant to help Brian, especially if a caregiver gets sick.

There will always be a rotation of people, to be a caregiver for both Melissa and Michael post-transplant. We will stay at the house we rent, that is also the place Mike will be recovering.

Flights to Texas from RI.

Melissa’s sister Kim has helped save her life so far with her unending dedication to providing healthy and healing meals for Melissa. Kim went part time, for this past year to help take care of Melissa, cook for her, and go to every Chemo treatment, also a hero! She will be taking unpaid leave whenever she goes down to help.

Mike is taking a LOA

Kate, a pediatric nurse in RI, is taking a LOA

Help with bills at home for Mike and Kate since Mike will be gone the entire month of February. Kate most of the month.

Car rental and Gas. We will share as we rotate down.

Food

Hospital parking

Mike must fly back to Houston for post follow-up blood work and CT scans, 3 months, 6 months and a year.

We can’t thank you enough for all the donations into Melissa’s GFM and all your extra help. Melissa wouldn’t be in Texas had it not been for her fundraisers, her work and people behind the scenes that are helping. In a lifetime, I couldn’t express the gratitude and love we feel from everyone around us. Every person has stuck with Melissa and our family, unselfishly. We’ve made new friends and bonded with old friends. It’s almost unbelievable where she is now, from that dark day in November of 23’ to planning a living donor surgery with her brother. We are praying that we get to this date, with no bumps or complications. Keep praying please and God Bless you all.