Jolynn's Medical Fund

1/23/2017
As many are aware of, the process of treating cancer is very physically and financially taxing. Jolynn and her family were all blessed to have her fight and be alive for two years after the initial diagnoses of pancreatic cancer. This blessing brought many procedures and ensuing medical bills, that caused Jolynn and her husband, Manuel to go into a large amount of debt. The family understands its role in helping and paying off the debt, but life is never that easy. We hope to be able to alleviate some of the financial burden facing the family, to be able to move easily move forward and recover from the tragedy of Jolynn's illness and subsequent passing. With best regards and love, John Howington.

3/7/2016
Hello all, as you may or may not know over the past year my Mom has been battling with pancreatic cancer and she still needs support. As you may or may not have heard, January of last year she had a CT scan that showed a mass located on her pancreas. Several of these tests did not give the result of her malignancy(the state or presence of a malignant tumor; cancer.). That following March she had surgery on her pancreas which had to be turned over to get a good biopsy because her malignancy was on the back of the head of her pancreas. With knowledge of the malignancy they would not start chemotherapy until there was evidence of cancer.(This surgery allowed her to finally start chemo)
   Beginning of April my Mom began chemotherapy for the next 6 months. The purpose of the chemo treatments was to shrink the tumor to allow a surgeon to be able to operate on her and remove the mass. 6 months later, in October, the surgeon had her get another CT scan and he, at that time, told her it had metastasized(spread)to her liver. Both her and her oncologist decided to get another opinion, because the first one seemed very frightful, as it naturally would. That following month, November, she went to the Mayo Clinic. After getting a MRI(Magnetic Resonance Imaging) at the Mayo Clinic, the surgeon there said he could operate.
   In December, at the Mayo Clinic they did the whipple procedure(a very long surgery; 10 hours for her)(http://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/whipple-procedure/basics/definition/prc-20021393) which removed the head, with the tumor of her pancreas. Also, removed lymph nodes in which 4 of them contained cancer. This procedure allowed my mother a chance to be cured for this present time. There was a high risk with the surgery. They were able to remove the mass but my Mom still has cancer cells that have been left behind... but the chemotherapy she is undergoing now is helping her to become cancer free but she also needs to undergo radiation to allow for the most successful outcome...



   All of the chemotherapy, and surgeries my Mom has had up until this point have put her in a financial bind. As of now, she has to have radiation done 5 days a week(Monday-Friday). For a total of 33 treatments until a professional says otherwise. Simply said, this radiation is becoming too much for her to pay on her own and I want to do all that I can do to help her in her time of need. My Mom has always gone out of her way for my brother and I, as well as to help others and I think it's time for her to receive that in return. Up until now our family, especially her, have been so GRATEFUL for all of the emotional and monetary support she has recieved. Any of the money donated here will be used directly to pay for my Mom's radiation treatments; it means the world to be able to have everyones continual support of my Mom during this time, and allowing her to be around for a cure. I love you all very much and I am thankful for every ounce of support, monetary or not.