Shannon's Strength
Donation protected
If you have had the pleasure of having Shannon Anderson Clarke in your life, you are a very lucky person. Shannon fills every room she walks into with love and happiness. She literally radiates joy to all around her. That is why this disease is so crushing. If there is one person in the world who doesn't deserve this it is Shannon.
But here we are and if Shannon is going to keep fighting as hard as she can we are going to be there to fight right along side her.
As all of these stories start, Shannon had a mammogram. The mammogram found something suspicious. Something big. So they rushed her that same day to have it biopsied. The biopsy proved to be Invasive Lobular Carcinoma Breast Cancer. The mass was over 8 cm and the doctors gave her a bunch of options. But Shannon watched her mom fight breast cancer so she knew that for her the most aggressive route was best. So they scheduled a double mastectomy.
Many of you reading this know Shan and so you know she has great boobies and great hair. Actually, absolutely stunning hair. And now she was about to loose both.
She went in for her double mastectomy and was dealt another blow - the cancer had spread. They took out 19 lymph nodes from her right arm and of these 9 were positive for metastasis. This upgraded her diagnosis to a Stage 3. I will always remember where I was when she told me this news. I will always remember the feeling of my heart literally stopping. The floor of my world seemed to have just fallen out and here was Shannon on the phone reassuring me! That is just what she does. That is just the kind of person she is.
Now Shannon had to contend with 16 rounds of chemo and 33 rounds of radiation. She knocked the chemo out while making friends with all of the nurses and combating the side effects of the poisonous chemo and recovering from her extensive surgery. She hurt. But she was always positive and her home support team, her mom (also a breast cancer survivor) and her husband were there for extensive support.
Shannon has just started radiation. And although there has been numurous set backs she is still a ball of energy - playing with her puppies, dancing with me, running around the campground. She lost her hair and her boobies but she still lights up every room she walks into. She still radiates the most positive attittude you could ever imagine. And, you know what, she will get new boobs (and they will be fantastic) and she is already growing new hair. The cancer did not take one iota of the amazing human being that Shannon is, but it did set her family back into a different lifestyle they did not expect. And she needs your help.
Thankfully, Shannon has health insurance. However, that insurance only partially covers her surgical procedure, daily radiation treatments and medications (read as a "mountain of bills estimating in the thousands"). The money raised here for Shannon will go directly to support Shannon's medical expenses not covered by her insurance. She needs to focus on getting healthy and fighting, rather than be burdened and stressed by finances. She also will have future surgeries to overcome including breast reconstruction and the removal of her fallopian tubes and ovaries. Shannon's type of cancer is highly linked with ovarian cancer.
We are asking you, her dear friends and family, for help. Any little bit helps. If you would prefer not to go through GoFundMe you can directly contact Nea Moyer or Margo Oatman. Shannon is having a benefit over Labor Day weekend (the information is below); she would love to see all of your bright and glowing faces.
But here we are and if Shannon is going to keep fighting as hard as she can we are going to be there to fight right along side her.
As all of these stories start, Shannon had a mammogram. The mammogram found something suspicious. Something big. So they rushed her that same day to have it biopsied. The biopsy proved to be Invasive Lobular Carcinoma Breast Cancer. The mass was over 8 cm and the doctors gave her a bunch of options. But Shannon watched her mom fight breast cancer so she knew that for her the most aggressive route was best. So they scheduled a double mastectomy.
Many of you reading this know Shan and so you know she has great boobies and great hair. Actually, absolutely stunning hair. And now she was about to loose both.
She went in for her double mastectomy and was dealt another blow - the cancer had spread. They took out 19 lymph nodes from her right arm and of these 9 were positive for metastasis. This upgraded her diagnosis to a Stage 3. I will always remember where I was when she told me this news. I will always remember the feeling of my heart literally stopping. The floor of my world seemed to have just fallen out and here was Shannon on the phone reassuring me! That is just what she does. That is just the kind of person she is.
Now Shannon had to contend with 16 rounds of chemo and 33 rounds of radiation. She knocked the chemo out while making friends with all of the nurses and combating the side effects of the poisonous chemo and recovering from her extensive surgery. She hurt. But she was always positive and her home support team, her mom (also a breast cancer survivor) and her husband were there for extensive support.
Shannon has just started radiation. And although there has been numurous set backs she is still a ball of energy - playing with her puppies, dancing with me, running around the campground. She lost her hair and her boobies but she still lights up every room she walks into. She still radiates the most positive attittude you could ever imagine. And, you know what, she will get new boobs (and they will be fantastic) and she is already growing new hair. The cancer did not take one iota of the amazing human being that Shannon is, but it did set her family back into a different lifestyle they did not expect. And she needs your help.
Thankfully, Shannon has health insurance. However, that insurance only partially covers her surgical procedure, daily radiation treatments and medications (read as a "mountain of bills estimating in the thousands"). The money raised here for Shannon will go directly to support Shannon's medical expenses not covered by her insurance. She needs to focus on getting healthy and fighting, rather than be burdened and stressed by finances. She also will have future surgeries to overcome including breast reconstruction and the removal of her fallopian tubes and ovaries. Shannon's type of cancer is highly linked with ovarian cancer.
We are asking you, her dear friends and family, for help. Any little bit helps. If you would prefer not to go through GoFundMe you can directly contact Nea Moyer or Margo Oatman. Shannon is having a benefit over Labor Day weekend (the information is below); she would love to see all of your bright and glowing faces.
Organizer and beneficiary
Nea Moyer
Organizer
Red Wing, MN
Shannon Anderson-Clarke
Beneficiary