Battling Breast Cancer Again:Becky Danielson Doyle

My best friend from 3rd grade, Becky Danielson Doyle developed Hodgkin's Lymphoma in 7th grade, losing her hair and other extreme side effects from massive chemo and radiation.  Back then, we didn't know about Make A Wish Foundation.  She was told she would never have kids, but 30 years later she has three beautiful young children- and a diagnosis of metastatic incurable cancer that has spread to her bones at the age of 44.  
Becky and her husband are still working full time and caring for three kids under age 11.  She hides her symptoms of bone pain and fatigue, and side effects of chemo because she wants to seem normal for her kids, and she is such a strong person that she feels bad needing help.  Please share as much as possible so we can help her keep being the strong mom and wife that she is and get her the most up to date treatment options possible to keep her alive.

Becky wants to be a mom to her three young kids and she would like to see them graduate high school. We want to do EVERYTHING possible to beat this cancer and defy the dismal statistics.  Becky’s breast cancer started when she was pregnant with Matthew 6 years ago.  She had a mastectomy while she was pregnant, and then had the other side removed after he was born and cancer was found there, too.  She was put on chemotherapy, which helped until 2017 when it spread to her lymph nodes.  Costly surgery, harsher chemo, and more radiation were prescribed, and then she was put on a different chemo daily, and their savings disappeared.  This year, Becky’s Stage 4 cancer has spread to most of her spine and other bones, which can cause them to be very painful and break. If it gets into her organs, her life expectancy declines dramatically, so we need to stop it from spreading now.   Statistics say metastatic cancer survival is 20% after 5 years, and she has been metastatic for 3 years already.  She has done all the recommended treatments, and recent consults have recommended another routine treatment that has been studied a long time and may help. But, Becky wants to be as aggressive as possible using the latest medical innovations.  As of now, there are tests and treatments she has not even been offered, which shocked me as a physician.  There are new experimental medications that can help her new chemo treatment work even better.  Gene tests to see if she has genetic mutations  (errors) that could make her more susceptible to cancer are available and now they have developed drugs to target these mutations- her genes need to be tested.  She needs cutting edge radiation therapy that focuses precisely to try to help the bones without destructing nearby important structures, like nerves, and since she has already had SO many radiation treatments in the past, routine radiation could cause serious consequences.     

No ONE doctor can focus on all new options, and doctors have a very hard time communicating with each other on what the best plan would be.  Next, they don’t coordinate AND anticipate future needs,  getting them ready to go, if necessary.  Becky needs a team of oncologists, radiation oncologists, geneticists, orthopedics, physical therapy, and other specialists dedicated to breast cancer. But, the BEST are not all in one place.  She needs a comprehensive team of doctors from the best hospitals around the country, and possibly world, to try to gain access to the newest options, newest promising drugs from trials all over the world, and especially what they are now calling personalized targeted cancer treatment, in order to make this happen.    

There is a company that does exactly this, and I call them the quarterback.   They call the plays (order tests and find routes to go), pass the ball (get consults), receive opinions back (flea flicker consult)  ensure the coordination and communication much more effectively (huddle) and they all work on the field to get the ball over the goal line before the clock runs out. (Football analogy for you guys getting tired of reading, although I should have used baseball since this IS Becky and Dan!)  Our goal line, or (home plate!) is to see those beautiful children graduate high school and let them be raised by their mom.  I have been referring patients to this company for years.  Becky’s case is what they are designed for- emergent complete review, consults from experts at major cancer centers all over, 24/7 access, and most of all less waiting for answers to her questions.  Wasted time is what allows this cancer to grow and spread, every day matters.  We needed these options and treatments months ago.  She sould ALREADY be on her new chemo regimen.   Considering Becky’s oncologist in MN did not show up to her virtual visit consult this morning to start her new chemo regimen recommended by a major institute, we know we now need the championship team.  She’s the Coach and I’m the assistant coach.  ( I have to be assistant because I can “go off” on a wrong call and get ejected, and we still need a coach on the field!)    

  As you can imagine, this is NOT cheap.  Far from it.  But I believe it’s the best way to keep Becky alive as long as possible and have access to all the best options around the world without having to travel as much, especially since she needs to still work full time.  Their financial goal has increased in order to afford these quarterback services and we ask that you please forward this to as many people as possible, via Facebook, email, text, anything you can do.

I wish I could do so much more for my best friend and my Godchildren, and her husband  who are facing this devastating tragedy.  Anything you can do is so greatly appreciated.  

Airline miles!  If you would like to donate miles from ANY airline, please contact me,  Jennifer Chilek, directly at [email redacted].