Help Emily Cormaney Fight Lymphoma!
Hi!
We'd like to take a brief moment to share a story about someone we're sure you've all been thinking about recently, Emily Cormaney.
As many of you may (or may not) know, Emily was diagnosed with follicular lymphoma (a type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma) in August 2016. Read that again- lymphoma. CANCER. If that made you pause or a bit nauseaous for a moment like it did for us, imagine what Emily and her family felt.
She noticed a lump in her neck in May of this year and doctors initially thought she had the mumps. But following a referral to an ENT (Ear, Nose, Throat) doctor, complete with CT scan and lymph node biopsy, a pathologist was able to accurately make the diagnosis. The ENT physician immediately referred Emily to Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, where she then underwent a PET scan and a bone marrow biopsy- and if you ask her, she'll tell you it so "matter-of-factly" as if she got a pedicure and haircut- when it was in fact a 2-day affair, countless needles, IV's, hospital rooms, doctors, nurses.... needless to say exhausting.
Results were returned to Emily; it showed that she has Stage 4 follicular lymphoma that is also in her bone marrow. (That felt like a ton of bricks, right?)
Stage 4, when used to describe lymphoma, describes the extent of lymph node areas affected by the cancer. In Emily’s case, ALL areas are affected (neck, chest, abdomen, groin, bone marrow, etc.). Her cancer is considered “bulky” in that the cancer has enlarged many of her lymph nodes to the size of a ping pong ball.
So what's next?
Emily has begun a 6-month treatment plan at Mayo Clinic. She is receiving chemotherapy in order to put the cancer into remission, which requires her to stay in Rochester for treatments once a month for the next 6 months. Her first treatment has already been completed, and her next one is coming within the month. Along with Emily, her parents, Mary and Craig Cormaney, are taking off work as needed, in order to travel to Mayo Clinic, as well as to care for her in the aftermath.
Currently, Emily works at John Deere as a Supply Management Specialist in Waterloo, IA. She has worked at John Deere for the past 6 years and purchased her first home in Cedar Falls, IA just 2 months prior to the diagnosis in June 2016. She enjoys reading and spending time with her family and friends. Emily especially loves to travel and wants to beat this cancer because she has too many places she still wants to visit someday!
We (her close friends) have started this page in hopes of raising money for Emily and her family to offset any costs that they may face in this upcoming battle. Donations will be used to help offset travel expenses, extensive medical bills, etc. We all can only imagine how difficult and emotional this will be for them, and hope any funds will help give them less to worry about.
We will update more as Emily shares with me her journey. And as you probably already know, Emily is very humble and though she could do this without any of our help, let's show her she doesn't need to. We're honored to call her a friend.
Thank you for taking the time to read this and, even if a donation is not possible, please keep the Cormaney family in your thoughts and prayers.
Please share this page on Facebook, so that it can reach a wide audience.
Sincerely,
Katie, Angela, Jodi, Sara, Heidi, & Christine
