Help Team Tracy fight Cancer!
Donation protected
If you've ever lost a loved one to cancer or experienced the impact of cancer on a family, please take a minute right now to consider helping our dear friend Tracy Neil Shewchuk in her cancer fight. Tracy has been battling ovarian cancer for 5 years, and is beginning another round of difficult treatment.
Who is Tracy? Tracy is a beloved wife, sister, mother, friend, and local business woman who was born and raised in small town Morro Bay, on the Central Coast of California. She graduated from Morro Bay High School in 1982, raised her daughter Cordelia mostly as a single mother, and started a new life with husband Bill Shewchuk in 2010. Tracy has been deeply involved in her community as an avid outdoorswoman and independent business owner, serving on the City Council Advisory Board and supporting numerous community events and charities, including fundraising for active duty service members overseas.
When Tracy was first diagnosed with ovarian cancer in August of 2013, it had already spread throughout her abdomen and she was told she was already at Stage IV. There is no Stage V. She underwent a difficult and invasive "debulking surgery" at Cottage Hospital in Santa Barbara to remove multiple tumors and some of her internal organs, and endured eight months of chemotherapy, followed by six months on vascular restrictors to inhibit tumor growth.
She also worked hard on healing her mind and spirit, throwing herself fully into not only the medical treatment, but connecting with, sharing with, and supporting others battling cancer through the Dragon Boat community of cancer survivors in Morro Bay - "Survivoars". After many months, Tracy was declared to have "no evidence of disease" - an amazing recovery from Stage IV ovarian cancer. Nevertheless, she enrolled in, and still participates in, a genetic information study through the cancer center in Santa Barbara to help further research and find better diagnostic tools for the 22,000 women who are diagnosed with ovarian cancer every year in the United States.
But as we all know, cancer is sneaky and persistent, and it returned in 2015. Now knowing the drill, Tracy threw herself fully into treatment again, underwent another "debulking surgery" to remove the biggest tumors, followed by fifteen months of several different chemo protocols with all the usual side effects - hair loss, nausea, fatigue, and another roller coaster ride for the entire family. She completely redesigned her diet, and went on a new Parp inhibitor drug as maintenance. Her cancer remained under control, but their debts were mounting.
Her cancer returned in March of 2018 and is not responding to ovarian cancer protocols or any platinum based chemo. Her doctors declared her condition inoperable due to the spread of disease to other organs. Tumors have been identified on her liver and intestine, and multiple lymph nodes are inflamed. She is currently on an immune therapy/chemo combo that is typically used for lung cancer to see if her cancer responds, while they explore new treatments through PCR Oncology in Arroyo Grande and the Stanford Medical Center's Women's Cancer Center. This is where your help is needed.
Medical insurance in this country is not cheap, especially for small business owners and the self-employed. Tracy and Bill are still carrying debt from their previous two rounds of treatment, and this third round is daunting, expensive, and new treatments and therapies are not approved by insurance companies. Out of town doctor's appointments and multiple rounds of treatment will again impact their ability to generate income from their shop in Morro Bay. There will be travel, lodging, and meal expenses while away from home, and the outstanding debts still need to be paid. New expenses could easily reach $30-50K per month.
Please consider a donation to help Tracy and Bill focus on her treatment rather than how to pay the bills. Every penny helps. Your generosity is deeply appreciated.
Gratefully,
Team Tracy
Who is Tracy? Tracy is a beloved wife, sister, mother, friend, and local business woman who was born and raised in small town Morro Bay, on the Central Coast of California. She graduated from Morro Bay High School in 1982, raised her daughter Cordelia mostly as a single mother, and started a new life with husband Bill Shewchuk in 2010. Tracy has been deeply involved in her community as an avid outdoorswoman and independent business owner, serving on the City Council Advisory Board and supporting numerous community events and charities, including fundraising for active duty service members overseas.
When Tracy was first diagnosed with ovarian cancer in August of 2013, it had already spread throughout her abdomen and she was told she was already at Stage IV. There is no Stage V. She underwent a difficult and invasive "debulking surgery" at Cottage Hospital in Santa Barbara to remove multiple tumors and some of her internal organs, and endured eight months of chemotherapy, followed by six months on vascular restrictors to inhibit tumor growth.
She also worked hard on healing her mind and spirit, throwing herself fully into not only the medical treatment, but connecting with, sharing with, and supporting others battling cancer through the Dragon Boat community of cancer survivors in Morro Bay - "Survivoars". After many months, Tracy was declared to have "no evidence of disease" - an amazing recovery from Stage IV ovarian cancer. Nevertheless, she enrolled in, and still participates in, a genetic information study through the cancer center in Santa Barbara to help further research and find better diagnostic tools for the 22,000 women who are diagnosed with ovarian cancer every year in the United States.
But as we all know, cancer is sneaky and persistent, and it returned in 2015. Now knowing the drill, Tracy threw herself fully into treatment again, underwent another "debulking surgery" to remove the biggest tumors, followed by fifteen months of several different chemo protocols with all the usual side effects - hair loss, nausea, fatigue, and another roller coaster ride for the entire family. She completely redesigned her diet, and went on a new Parp inhibitor drug as maintenance. Her cancer remained under control, but their debts were mounting.
Her cancer returned in March of 2018 and is not responding to ovarian cancer protocols or any platinum based chemo. Her doctors declared her condition inoperable due to the spread of disease to other organs. Tumors have been identified on her liver and intestine, and multiple lymph nodes are inflamed. She is currently on an immune therapy/chemo combo that is typically used for lung cancer to see if her cancer responds, while they explore new treatments through PCR Oncology in Arroyo Grande and the Stanford Medical Center's Women's Cancer Center. This is where your help is needed.
Medical insurance in this country is not cheap, especially for small business owners and the self-employed. Tracy and Bill are still carrying debt from their previous two rounds of treatment, and this third round is daunting, expensive, and new treatments and therapies are not approved by insurance companies. Out of town doctor's appointments and multiple rounds of treatment will again impact their ability to generate income from their shop in Morro Bay. There will be travel, lodging, and meal expenses while away from home, and the outstanding debts still need to be paid. New expenses could easily reach $30-50K per month.
Please consider a donation to help Tracy and Bill focus on her treatment rather than how to pay the bills. Every penny helps. Your generosity is deeply appreciated.
Gratefully,
Team Tracy
Organizer and beneficiary
Dennis Keith Elliot
Organizer
Atascadero, CA
Bill Shewchuk
Beneficiary
