Hi, my name is Terece, and I'm reaching out for help to assist my sister, Denice, and her husband, Ryain, fight her battle with Endometrial Cancer.

Hey there everyone,

We just wanted to provide another update on Denice's journey, share a little bit about how we got here, the current status of things, and the obstacles she faces in her recovery.

First and foremost, from the bottom of our hearts, THANK YOU for the support, donations, well wishes, and for spreading the word. Without your generosity and kindness, (some of you, for a complete stranger) the challenging road ahead would be just all that much more daunting.

My Sisters Story

Denice has been diagnosed with stage 4 Endometrial Cancer, after months of pursuing help, being ignored, and entirely mishandled by her primary physician. What started off in September 2023 as discomfort in her pelvic region, had by March 2024 turned into a mass growing in her pelvic area near her femoral nerve and had metastasized to her L3 on her spine.

Based on the urging of her oncologist, she underwent radiation therapy. Unfortunately, after only the 4th day of treatment, the radiation treatment had damaged the nerves in her spine and pelvic area and she is now no longer able to walk or stand. Her radiologist denies all fault or responsibility.

Due to this she needs assistance now for even her basic needs. Her husband is not able to work and, at this point, is now her full-time caregiver as insurance will not pay for a cna to come in daily for a few hours to help. This would need to be paid out of pocket, $29 an hour, by my sister. My sister has not been able to work since March and is on short-term disability leave, which has been barely covers their living expenses.

In order to continue with chemo, Denice MUST be able to stand and walk on her own, due to the many complicated side effects that come with this treatment.

Due to this, Denice was admitted to a nursing home/rehab facility to help her regain the use of her legs. The conditions in this facility were deplorable, unsanitary, and the center was severely understaffed and physical therapy was a joke. Denice was in this facility for 20 days as this is all the insurance would pay for on top of the $2400 they charged my sister. Denice was released with home health however, they offered very little services with no additional support or resources for next steps. However, to complicate matters more, during this stay Denice contracted an infection that led to a case of severe Ascites (excessive buildup of fluid in the stomach) which has further complicated her journey to heal. This caused a hospital stay June 30th-July 26th.

Because of the infection, Denice has had to have her stomach drained every few days. As you might imagine, getting to the hospital to do so, without the use of your legs, provides quite a challenge. Denice applied to have In-House physical therapy however the claim was denied by the insurance. Denice's doctor appealed, to which the insurance said "if Denice can get to a hospital to be drained, we will cover it". After the hospital worked out a plan to get her to and from the draining procedure the insurance company denied coverage of the in house physical therapy once again. To do in house physical therapy Denice would have to pay $11,000 a week out of pocket.

Effectively, United Healthcare has written Denice a death warrant and has excused themselves from her treatment and recovery, despite her continuing to pay her monthly premium.

And now it's August 2024. Nearly a year of pain, frustration, feelings of hopelessness, and struggles. Denice's short term disability expires this month and she is moving to long term disability, which offers significantly less of her monthly pay. Living in a single income household, her's being the only source, this paints a bleak and daunting road ahead. Not only for treatment and recovery, but just to make day to day ends meet. The situation is dire.

In Summary

So here we are. Denice has stage 4 cancer, which she was seeking help for way back in September of 2023, before her eventual diagnosis in March 2024. In order to get the treatment she needs, she needs PT to regain use of her legs, which she lost during early radiation treatment. Insurance is denying coverage for PT, in-home care, or even rental of a specialized bed that could help. In order to start PT, Denice needs to secure funding to pay out of pocket AND has to heal from the ascites caused by infection. To have the ascites procedure done, she needs to go to the hospital 1 to 2 times a week. Denice has drained her savings account and now her disability offerings from her employer are drying up.

And this is why we need your help. Her primary care physician failed Denice, United Healthcare insurance failed Denice, the rehab recovery facility failed Denice, and we are running out of options on who we can count on. If you can continue to share this page, post on your socials, donate if/when you can, it will help Denice beat this thing!!!

Denice is not ready to call it quits. Denice rejects, refuses and rebukes the insurance company's "death warrant". Denice has a thirst for life, has a desire to fight, has the will to face the physical challenges, and the strength to get back up on her own two feet, if we could only just secure the funding to get her the treatment she needs.

Anything you can offer, anything you can share, means the world to Denice and her family, and brings her one step closer to recovery.

Some of the funds donated were used to pay off some of the bills incurred her, as well as acquire a small inflatable "hot tub" so Denice can attempt PT at home, an electric wheelchair and several other items that have made things easier for care.

Thank you again for your support, your prayers, your donations, and wishes. We can do this together.

** Update ** September 25

My sister, Denice, passed on to the other side today. I thank everyone who has assisted in helping her these past few months. Whether it was via donations, sharing her gofundme page or prayers, she and her husband were grateful.

I will keep this account open for 2 weeks then will close it out.

Thank you again,

God Bless

❣️❣️ ❣️