Help Clark
Donation protected
I woke up a couple of months ago and suddenly my world was upside down. I went from a 43-year-old communication specialist with a love for playing tennis, a beautiful family and a positive outlook on life, to someone who can only stare in the distance – with nothing but disbelief. How is this possible? Surely it’s a mistake? That’s the first thing that went through my mind when I heard the news. I was given the mark ‘incurably ill’. But I’m not ready to go yet – not by a long shot. I need to see my daughter grow up. Watch her go from toddler to teenager. Talk to her about her unacceptable adolescent behavior. Disprove of her first boyfriend. Be an incredibly proud father when she goes off to college and give her away at the altar when she finds the person she wants to spend the rest of her life with. And now, a couple of months later, I still can’t grasp the idea. Every once in a while we still cry on each other’s shoulders. As a family, we still have so much to do, so much to see, and so many beautiful things to enjoy – with each other and with the people close to us, whom we care so much about. We just can’t let this happen. I want to put a stop to this.
The diagnosis and how we found out
At the start of May 2018, I heard that I have an inoperable stage IV intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. In short, that’s a relatively aggressive type of cancer. It all started with insomnia in October last year. When I also started experiencing stomach pains, we decided to see a doctor. After giving two blood samples and being referred to the hospital, it became clear that I had an abnormality on my pancreas. Later, this turned out to be a tumor on my liver; a tumor that stemmed from the gall ducts and had attached itself in a spot between essential vessels and lymph nodes. On top of that, it’s a rare type of cancer that is seldom found in younger people. Which means experts don’t know much about it yet. Just my luck. Or should I say just our luck? Because I’m not the only one who’s affected by this news – my beautiful family is, too.
Treatment
After we received the diagnosis, we immediately made appointments in two Dutch hospitals. Here, they told me the tumor is inoperable. The tumor cannot be removed, cannot be cured and my life could only be prolonged with chemo treatments. That’s why we decided to drive to Leuven, Belgium, for a third opinion. We simply weren’t willing to live with this diagnosis and life expectancy.
The experts in Leuven told me that the tumor is operable. What a relief. But in order to perform said surgery, the tumor first needs to shrink. The next step is removing part of my liver and replacing the encapsulated parts of my affected blood vessels with transplants. Those replacement vessels will be taken from my leg.
With this news in mind, we continued to look for options and discovered a treatment in the United States. This treatment is completely tailor-made. It is based on my blood’s DNA. I had a DNA test that shows how I respond to a specific type of chemo treatment and intravenous vitamin supplementation. The treatment can only take place at the Forsythe Cancer Care Center in Reno, Nevada. Dr Forsythe’s treatment shows results of about 80% tumor shrinkage. In order to administer the treatment, they will be placing a Port-a-Cath on the left side of my chest. This device is necessary for part of the chemo and is used to administer the vitamin supplements as well.
This treatment in the USA will take three weeks, and once I get back to the Netherlands, I will receive a three-month, pill-based chemo treatment. After those three months I will goback to Belgium for a scan that will determine whether or not the tumor has shrunk enough to be operable. If this treatment is successful, it could save my life.
Your contribution
I’m sure you understand: this treatment shouldn’t be delayed. Unfortunately, the costs of this special treatment in the USA aren’t covered by my insurance in the Netherlands. That’s why we need to pay for this treatment ourselves, and we expect the bills to run up quickly. Any amount of support we receive, is therefore incredibly welcome. You’ll be contributing to a treatment that will hopefully help me get better, so I can be there for my family in the years to come. Because I don’t want to leave yet. I’m too young and I have too many plans. My beautiful daughter Juna deserves a father who can see her grow up. And my amazing wife Leontien, whom I married last May; a bit of light in a very dark time, a partner to raise our little girl with. I just can’t imagine leaving my family so soon. I won’t accept it. And I’m willing to fight for it. Your contribution will hopefully help make sure that my family and I have a bright future ahead of us. I’d like to thank you for your contribution – from the bottom of my heart. And I’d really appreciate it if you’d share my message.
Contribution by Bank
If you want to contribute without using a credit card, please use the following details:
Account: NL13RABO0146197445
Name: C. Bouwman EO. L. Ultzen
Reference: Help Clark
Or send a text message to: 0031614706813
The diagnosis and how we found out
At the start of May 2018, I heard that I have an inoperable stage IV intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. In short, that’s a relatively aggressive type of cancer. It all started with insomnia in October last year. When I also started experiencing stomach pains, we decided to see a doctor. After giving two blood samples and being referred to the hospital, it became clear that I had an abnormality on my pancreas. Later, this turned out to be a tumor on my liver; a tumor that stemmed from the gall ducts and had attached itself in a spot between essential vessels and lymph nodes. On top of that, it’s a rare type of cancer that is seldom found in younger people. Which means experts don’t know much about it yet. Just my luck. Or should I say just our luck? Because I’m not the only one who’s affected by this news – my beautiful family is, too.
Treatment
After we received the diagnosis, we immediately made appointments in two Dutch hospitals. Here, they told me the tumor is inoperable. The tumor cannot be removed, cannot be cured and my life could only be prolonged with chemo treatments. That’s why we decided to drive to Leuven, Belgium, for a third opinion. We simply weren’t willing to live with this diagnosis and life expectancy.
The experts in Leuven told me that the tumor is operable. What a relief. But in order to perform said surgery, the tumor first needs to shrink. The next step is removing part of my liver and replacing the encapsulated parts of my affected blood vessels with transplants. Those replacement vessels will be taken from my leg.
With this news in mind, we continued to look for options and discovered a treatment in the United States. This treatment is completely tailor-made. It is based on my blood’s DNA. I had a DNA test that shows how I respond to a specific type of chemo treatment and intravenous vitamin supplementation. The treatment can only take place at the Forsythe Cancer Care Center in Reno, Nevada. Dr Forsythe’s treatment shows results of about 80% tumor shrinkage. In order to administer the treatment, they will be placing a Port-a-Cath on the left side of my chest. This device is necessary for part of the chemo and is used to administer the vitamin supplements as well.
This treatment in the USA will take three weeks, and once I get back to the Netherlands, I will receive a three-month, pill-based chemo treatment. After those three months I will goback to Belgium for a scan that will determine whether or not the tumor has shrunk enough to be operable. If this treatment is successful, it could save my life.
Your contribution
I’m sure you understand: this treatment shouldn’t be delayed. Unfortunately, the costs of this special treatment in the USA aren’t covered by my insurance in the Netherlands. That’s why we need to pay for this treatment ourselves, and we expect the bills to run up quickly. Any amount of support we receive, is therefore incredibly welcome. You’ll be contributing to a treatment that will hopefully help me get better, so I can be there for my family in the years to come. Because I don’t want to leave yet. I’m too young and I have too many plans. My beautiful daughter Juna deserves a father who can see her grow up. And my amazing wife Leontien, whom I married last May; a bit of light in a very dark time, a partner to raise our little girl with. I just can’t imagine leaving my family so soon. I won’t accept it. And I’m willing to fight for it. Your contribution will hopefully help make sure that my family and I have a bright future ahead of us. I’d like to thank you for your contribution – from the bottom of my heart. And I’d really appreciate it if you’d share my message.
Contribution by Bank
If you want to contribute without using a credit card, please use the following details:
Account: NL13RABO0146197445
Name: C. Bouwman EO. L. Ultzen
Reference: Help Clark
Or send a text message to: 0031614706813
Organizer
Leontien Bouwman
Organizer
Laren, NL
