Hope for the Horejs'

If you know Austin Horejs, you know he is one of the toughest guys there is. No matter what may get in his way he always manages to have a positive attitude and optimistic outlook on life. Austin's selflessness is just part of what makes him such an amazing son, brother and friend. His smile is contagious and his personality unique and amazing. Austin loves to spend his time with his friends, loved ones and his dog Sam. He recently graduated with a Bachelors in Business Operations and was recruited for a supervisor job at Lamb Weston before he even graduated.

Unfortunately, things have recently taken a turn for the worst. About 2 years ago, doctors found melanoma on his lower leg. They surgically removed it and didn't anticipate it coming back but in August 2013 he found a lump in his groin that was immediately examined and tested positive for Melanoma. Shortly after his 24th birthday he had the lymph nodes in his groin removed with hope that it would get rid of the cancer. After a surgery and radiation sessions, he was back on the road to his normal life. On December 3rd, things got really scary. The doctors found a tumor that had fractured his c5 vertebrae, and immediately performed an emergency surgery to remove the tumor and take out the fractured bone. Since then, things seem to be progressively getting worse. He now has numerous tumors throughout his spine, chest, and skull which have begun to fracture multiple bones. The Melanoma has affected most of his body and is causing him extreme pain. Along with the pain he has a loss of appetite, blurred vision, nausea, and fatigue. The doctors are closely monitoring him and have noticed the bio-chemo and medication he is on is not properly working. They are testing him on one more but he is running out of options, we can only hope that this next one will begin to fight the cancer. Austin's spirits are still high, his personality the same, and he still amazes those around him.

This is a very difficult time for his family, friends, and loved ones, especially his mom and dad, Mike and Ann Horejs. His mom is currently staying home with him to take care of him and make sure he is as comfortable as possible. His work has so graciously given him as much time as he needs to heal and have shown tremendous amounts of support. Let's all join together to support him and his family in prayer, good thoughts and lots of love!

We can all help Austin kick cancer's butt! Anything helps and is greatly appreciated!