AlyStrong Cancer Fund
Donation protected
“It's cancer.”
Two words you don’t expect to hear when you’re young. And specifically rectal colon cancer, although considered an older person's disease, can strike anyone at any time. Including me.
Hi, my name is Aly, I'm freshly 31 years old and at the beginning of August of this year I got the call that I have cancer.
I can still hear the muted sickly silence in my head after my GI Doctor confirmed the biopsy she took earlier that week was cancer.
Cancer? I think I must have heard it wrong. There's no way. I'm not in pain, I work out, I eat right, I watch my diet all the time. I'm healthy, I'm happy, I don't look sick, I haven't lost any weight.
I'm already arguing and bargaining inside of my head. She's wrong, she has to be. Please God, tell me she's wrong.
The silence turns to a painful high-pitched ringing and somewhere through the fuzz I hear, "Are you there?"...
"I am." I say, holding a now shaking phone in my hand. My boyfriend takes the phone from my trembling hands and puts it on speakerphone so we can hear better. She continued on in a rush, something about needing to schedule a cat scan and set up an appointment with an Oncology Surgeon. I can barely focus. The room is spinning and my vision is getting blurry. I need to sit down.
She says what stage cancer is unclear and they would need to go in for another colonoscopy, but this time one with an ultrasound attachment. Her voice sounds far away, like I'm listening through a wall. My boyfriend is asking her questions and I can hear his voice choking on his words. He's crying, and in that moment I realize I am too. We're sitting in the middle of our living room in our small apartment with our hands clasped together. I think I'm going to throw up. How did this happen? Did I do something wrong? What happens now? Am I going to die? No one can answer these questions. And they won't for months and months to come...
Flashback to January of this year, 2016... my boyfriend, Lance, and I decided to fly to Vegas to celebrate the New Year. We had worked out fiercely for four months prior, spending 4-5 hours in the gym 6 days a week. We were undoubtedly making our way to being in the best shape of our lives. Vegas was a mini vacation since we rarely get time away. I was sitting in the bathroom staring at toilet paper that is smeared with blood. Quickly, I threw it in the toilet and flush it down. To be honest, while temporarily terrifying to see blood in a place I don't typically see it, I wrote it off easily. I was working out a lot after all. Maybe it's hemorrhoids. I must have pushed too much weight while squatting. Seemed reasonable, why not? I pulled out my phone and quickly googled "blood in stool". A slew of information comes up and I shake my head and roll my eyes as WebMD pumps out several life-threatening possibilities, Ulcerative Colitis, Crohn's Disease and of course, colon cancer. Seemed radical at the time to consider any of those. I felt fine. "It's just hemorrhoids," I told myself, I'd get it looked at later if it persists but for now... Vegas...
Months pass and the frequency in which the blood appears is getting higher. Still no pain but I know it's not normal, so I talk to my Primary Care Doctor and she sets a colonoscopy for later that week...
The prep for the colonoscopy was terrible, but they said the procedure is nothing and I'll be "under" the whole time. In a post-anesthesia haze, I saw the GI Doctor come into the recovery room and she handed me a few pieces of paper saying they found what looks to be a malignant tumor, but not to worry about it, she took some biopsies and she'll call me after the weekend.
Tuesday is when the call came in, and since then my life has been turned on its head...
Cancer doesn't care how old you are, doesn't care about your ethnicity, your gender, your social class, your religious beliefs or what you had for lunch... Well, maybe the last one but don't quote me on that.
My apologies for the length of story, but I hope it gives you a glimpse into my life. Since those moments I've seen an Oncologist, a Surgeon, a Radiology Oncologist and have a wonderful team. They've identified I have Stage 3B rectal colon cancer and have a treatment plan laid out.
There are no guarantees, but the survival rate is high, so long as you can pay for it.
In a week I'll be started on Xeloda, a pill form of Chemotherapy for 6 weeks in conjunction with radiation. The pills are expensive, approximately $1,000 per month. I'll be on them for about a month and a half. After that, I get a six week break and then I go into surgery to remove the tumor and any surrounding lymph nodes, again, expensive. 6 week surgical recovery and then I'll get a central line put in to continue Chemotherapy for another 6 week minimum.
I have been lucky to be surrounded in love and am hopeful for brighter days ahead. If you feel you can help, no amount is too small. Every dollar counts. I appreciate all the help and am so thankful for the kindness that exists in people's hearts.
Thank you!
If you want to see the stories and progress in video form you can click these links:
https://www.facebook.com/alycmyra/videos/10101509158930478/?l=2882583319566461108
https://www.facebook.com/alycmyra/videos/10101517476267468/?l=3781558059804784507
Two words you don’t expect to hear when you’re young. And specifically rectal colon cancer, although considered an older person's disease, can strike anyone at any time. Including me.
Hi, my name is Aly, I'm freshly 31 years old and at the beginning of August of this year I got the call that I have cancer.
I can still hear the muted sickly silence in my head after my GI Doctor confirmed the biopsy she took earlier that week was cancer.
Cancer? I think I must have heard it wrong. There's no way. I'm not in pain, I work out, I eat right, I watch my diet all the time. I'm healthy, I'm happy, I don't look sick, I haven't lost any weight.
I'm already arguing and bargaining inside of my head. She's wrong, she has to be. Please God, tell me she's wrong.
The silence turns to a painful high-pitched ringing and somewhere through the fuzz I hear, "Are you there?"...
"I am." I say, holding a now shaking phone in my hand. My boyfriend takes the phone from my trembling hands and puts it on speakerphone so we can hear better. She continued on in a rush, something about needing to schedule a cat scan and set up an appointment with an Oncology Surgeon. I can barely focus. The room is spinning and my vision is getting blurry. I need to sit down.
She says what stage cancer is unclear and they would need to go in for another colonoscopy, but this time one with an ultrasound attachment. Her voice sounds far away, like I'm listening through a wall. My boyfriend is asking her questions and I can hear his voice choking on his words. He's crying, and in that moment I realize I am too. We're sitting in the middle of our living room in our small apartment with our hands clasped together. I think I'm going to throw up. How did this happen? Did I do something wrong? What happens now? Am I going to die? No one can answer these questions. And they won't for months and months to come...
Flashback to January of this year, 2016... my boyfriend, Lance, and I decided to fly to Vegas to celebrate the New Year. We had worked out fiercely for four months prior, spending 4-5 hours in the gym 6 days a week. We were undoubtedly making our way to being in the best shape of our lives. Vegas was a mini vacation since we rarely get time away. I was sitting in the bathroom staring at toilet paper that is smeared with blood. Quickly, I threw it in the toilet and flush it down. To be honest, while temporarily terrifying to see blood in a place I don't typically see it, I wrote it off easily. I was working out a lot after all. Maybe it's hemorrhoids. I must have pushed too much weight while squatting. Seemed reasonable, why not? I pulled out my phone and quickly googled "blood in stool". A slew of information comes up and I shake my head and roll my eyes as WebMD pumps out several life-threatening possibilities, Ulcerative Colitis, Crohn's Disease and of course, colon cancer. Seemed radical at the time to consider any of those. I felt fine. "It's just hemorrhoids," I told myself, I'd get it looked at later if it persists but for now... Vegas...
Months pass and the frequency in which the blood appears is getting higher. Still no pain but I know it's not normal, so I talk to my Primary Care Doctor and she sets a colonoscopy for later that week...
The prep for the colonoscopy was terrible, but they said the procedure is nothing and I'll be "under" the whole time. In a post-anesthesia haze, I saw the GI Doctor come into the recovery room and she handed me a few pieces of paper saying they found what looks to be a malignant tumor, but not to worry about it, she took some biopsies and she'll call me after the weekend.
Tuesday is when the call came in, and since then my life has been turned on its head...
Cancer doesn't care how old you are, doesn't care about your ethnicity, your gender, your social class, your religious beliefs or what you had for lunch... Well, maybe the last one but don't quote me on that.
My apologies for the length of story, but I hope it gives you a glimpse into my life. Since those moments I've seen an Oncologist, a Surgeon, a Radiology Oncologist and have a wonderful team. They've identified I have Stage 3B rectal colon cancer and have a treatment plan laid out.
There are no guarantees, but the survival rate is high, so long as you can pay for it.
In a week I'll be started on Xeloda, a pill form of Chemotherapy for 6 weeks in conjunction with radiation. The pills are expensive, approximately $1,000 per month. I'll be on them for about a month and a half. After that, I get a six week break and then I go into surgery to remove the tumor and any surrounding lymph nodes, again, expensive. 6 week surgical recovery and then I'll get a central line put in to continue Chemotherapy for another 6 week minimum.
I have been lucky to be surrounded in love and am hopeful for brighter days ahead. If you feel you can help, no amount is too small. Every dollar counts. I appreciate all the help and am so thankful for the kindness that exists in people's hearts.
Thank you!
If you want to see the stories and progress in video form you can click these links:
https://www.facebook.com/alycmyra/videos/10101509158930478/?l=2882583319566461108
https://www.facebook.com/alycmyra/videos/10101517476267468/?l=3781558059804784507
Organizer
Aly Costello
Organizer
Kansas City, MO
