Scott Carter Needs Your Help!

Support Scott Carter through treatment and recovery of Squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (cancer).  Earlier this year our dear friend Scott received news that he had a tumor on his tongue.  This type of cancer if caught early enough is treatable and can be cured.  They performed a biopsy early and ended up removing a good portion of his tongue to reduce chances of it spreading. They treated with radiation and it appeared that they caught it early enough.  Unfortunately in March of 2018 on a follow up at Roswell Park Cancer Institute his prognosis worsened.  He went to Upstate Cancer Center for surgery on July 5th and underwent a 17 hour procedure.  Phase 1 they had to remove a large portion of his tongue and lymph nodes.  The surgery was extensive and involved using portions of his leg and arm to rebuild his tongue .  The outcome is still very much unknown.   Phase 2 has Scott undergoing a very aggressive treatment plan that began mid August.  Treatment includes daily rounds of radiation for 30 days, Monday - Friday, and 3 rounds of chemotherapy.  Needless to say on September 13 word from Scott is “it’s taking a significant toll on me”.  Eating is though a feeding tube and the pain is significant making swallowing and sleeping extremely difficult.  When we stopped by to see how we could help, we found that he was still counting his blessing and wanted to get back to his work as a Resident Counselor at Unity House of Cayuga County in Auburn.  He loves his work, where he assists people who have been coping with Mental Illness in their lives, where every life has value and purpose.  He’s extremely grateful for his medical insurance and the FMLA benefits he used early on.  Scott admits the co-pays are adding up and his disability payments haven’t kicked in yet.  Which by they way is not even close to helping with the co-pays and bills piling up.  Scott has been out of work since July 5th and the financial pressure has been building up. It’s difficult to go through what Scott has been going through and the stress of finances only makes it harder to get the rest needed to beat this cancer.   So what now?  When Scott finishes with Phase 2, hopefully early October he will begin Phase 3 which includes speech rebab therapy and eating/swallowing therapy.  No timeline, on how long that will take, so please continue your prayers. We have been heartbroken to watch such a good friend have to endure so much and also know others are too.  People will often ask how they can help?  First and foremost, PRAY!  Scott believes he has a lot more life to live and believes that God is listening!  In addition to prayers, send him an encouraging word via Private Message on Facebook and snail mail: 5572 Valley Drive, Jordan, NY 13080.  Lastly, if moved to and able,  please consider donating here to help with the mounting bills that continue to come. Thank you in advance for all your support!  We will keep you posted on Scott's progress. Scott Simpson