Jason’s Fight For Life

When you hear the devastating words “You have Cancer” you can hardly comprehend them. When you do comprehend them, you think about your wife and 3 young daughters and that you have so much more living to do. When you hear “you have cancer” you begin a journey and you FIGHT. You fight HARD with a strength you never knew you had. Jason’s fight began New Year’s Eve 2014 with a diagnosis of Adenocarcinoma of the appendix. A cancer so rare, that not much is known of how to treat it specifically. He has endured multiple surgeries to remove his appendix, remove parts of the colon, and resolve a bowel obstruction. In 2017, he underwent another extensive surgery call HIPEC to remove tumors growing in his abdominal cavity and receive heated chemotherapy therein. He has also had two chemotherapy regimens each lasting 6 months. Unfortunately, Jason’s cancer returned for the 3rd time in November 2017 with metastasis to his liver. He is no longer a surgical candidate and we know chemotherapy is not working. Give up? NO!! Continue to fight? YES! After much research, we decided to pursue alternative treatments at Issels Immuno-Oncology center in Santa Barbara, CA, and Mexico. This program provides a Dendritic cell vaccine; a cutting-edge immunotherapy that harnesses the body’s own immune system to fight its cancer as well as may other treatments to help identify and eliminate the underlying causes for immune suppression and disease development. Jason’s treatment plan will require a 5-day hospitalization to receive the vaccine and an additional 3 weeks of outpatient treatment in California. The cost of this alternative therapy is tremendous and it is not covered by insurance. We need to explore every option available to save Jason. Jason is an amazing husband, father, son, leader, and friend to all. He has embraced this journey and never once complained or asked Why Me? He was able to work through much of his treatment and now that he cannot, he still continues to dig deep each and every day and manages to smile even through his pain. This journey and how he continues to deal with his illness has been an inspiration to so many. His positivity, mental resolve and his faith in God has never been stronger. Even through this difficult journey, there has been beauty. As a family, we know we do not walk alone. We know that the road is tough and at times will be very dark. Our confidence and belief in God is unwavering but, we are also aware of the great power in community. We have always believed that we have the responsibility to do all we can to move “mountains into the oceans”. So, we are asking all of our friends, family and anyone else who has been touched by Jason’s life or just for the shear reason to help save his life to consider coming along side us by picking up a shovel, grabbing a wheel barrel and help us move this mountain into the ocean. Donating to our cause will help pay for the urgent medical treatment that can possibly save Jason’s life. We are at peace with the ultimate outcome whatever that may be, but we are resolute to do all we can while we can. So please consider being a part of our efforts by donating as little or as much as you feel you can to help us reach our goal of $100,000. We are so grateful to so many for the support poured out to our family through prayer, words of encouragement, and help with daily family needs. Thank you! We feel loved and blessed.