Stand with Robin in Her Cancer Journey

Hello all, this is Merri Paige, Robin Potter's daughter.

In August of this year, my mom began having issues with severe pain in her neck, jaw, and throat. After seeing her PCP, oral surgeon for a recent tooth implant, and a walk-in clinic, all remedied with pain medicines and/or injections.

On November 3rd, my mom was leaving a church function when she started having extreme chills. This prompted her to check her temperature, which was very high. My dad immediately took her to the local ER. After explaining to the doctor all of her issues, he requested a scan of her neck. This in turn showed a mass on her thyroid. She was then told to contact an ENT at that point. Luckily, my dad was seeing an ENT for a personal issue of his own and encouraged the doctor to put my mom's health first. From that point on, everything became a whirlwind. My mom had an ultrasound and biopsy which showed thyroid cancer. Unfortunately, the biopsy did not show what type of thyroid cancer. This meant her thyroid must come out immediately and be sent off for further diagnosis.

At first, the doctor felt pretty confident about removing her thyroid and the treatment. On November 26th, the doctor started my mom's surgery. It became over a four-hour procedure. Afterwards, he informed my dad that it was one of the worst surgeries he had ever done. The mass on her thyroid was hard rather than soft tissue, and it had encapsulated the right side of her vocal cord nerve as well as attached to her esophagus. The doctor kept saying he hoped he got it all. He sent a sample off so that we knew what other treatments lay ahead.

My mom came home from her surgery right before Thanksgiving and stated she felt better than she had in months. However, on December 3rd, our world got knocked upside down. Her surgeon personally called to tell her that she had Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer, the rarest of all thyroid cancers which not only spreads rapidly but also has a high mortality rate. She was immediately contacted to schedule PET scans, CT scans, and more in the upcoming weeks. She will require both chemotherapy and radiation. She is still scheduled with local doctors but has reached out to MD Anderson for additional help. She was informed that it would cost between $200-$3,000, dependent on insurance, for them to receive her pathology report. From that point, her doctor can request insurance to pay for her treatment due to its severity and their experience.

If she follows through with MD Anderson, she, along with my dad and brother, will have to travel to and from the facility, pay for lodging, food, and extra medical expenses along the way. Both my dad and mom are on a smaller fixed income, so this of course is a big financial burden for them. Asking for your help is the last thing my mom would want me to do because that is just who she is. She would say that prayers are enough. While prayers are always welcome, financial assistance for her during this scary time in her life is a blessing. She wants to fight this, so please help her win the battle!