A Lifeline for Cathelyn Canda

Hi, my name is Elena. Together with my classmates in Colegio San Agustin Batch 1997, I'm appealing to your generous hearts to help raise funds for our fellow alumni, Cathelyn Canda. Cathelyn is a cancer patient, unemployed, and a single mother to her 20-year old daughter, Tin.

We hope that by sharing with you her story, you can help us give a lifeline to our good friend, Cathelyn.

In April 2022, Cathelyn was brought to Our Lady of the Pillar Medical Center because of so much pain. The diagnosis was breast cancer with metastasis to the bones for which she needed hip replacement surgery. Due to the high cost of operation and hip prosthesis, this could not be done immediately. At this time, she reached out to us to ask for help. Some of our friends advised and aided to get her transferred to a public hospital for a no-cost operation. It took almost 4 months of finding connections, consulting with oncologists and specialists, and doing paperwork, before she was transferred to Jose Reyes Memorial Hospital. By this time, her expenses from Our Lady of the Pillar had piled up.

Since being hospitalized, her daughter Tin stayed with her. Tin had just graduated from senior high school but had to discontinue her college plans so she could be her mom's caregiver.

In September, Cathelyn finally had her hip replacement surgery and was able to go home by the end of that month. Before the surgery, she was laid off from her call center job since she could no longer go to work. I remember a conversation we had around this time... she was worried that they wouldn't have a place to go after she gets released from the hospital, as they had not been able to keep up with rental payments.

Throughout Cathelyn's ordeal, our classmates have donated and arranged for several fundraising efforts to help with her hospital bills at Our Lady of the Pillar, medicines, supplies, wheelchair, and rental payments. But Cathelyn could use more help, especially as she remains unemployed / unable to work. Her previous job as a call center agent only provided enough to support her daughter and their daily expenses, making it hard for her to save. Her sisters are also burdened with their own medical expenses, and her relatives have done all they could.

In addition to her daily needs, she is about to start her radiation therapy and chemotherapy treatments. (For additional context, the Philippines does not have 100% free social services like many developed countries. Jose Reyes is a public hospital that does provide free medical services but not supplies or medicines.)

Here is a list of her current needs in Philippine Peso and USD. These total to about $710 in monthly expenses or $8,500 for the next 12 months.

Info from Nov 2022 - Feb 2023:

A. Medical Expenses

• Denosumab (taken once a month): PhP 19,000 or $330 per month

• Physical Therapy Rehab (PhP 800 per session, 3x a week): PhP 9,600 or $170 per month

• Adult Diapers (PhP 700 for 30 pcs for every 6 days): PhP 3,500 or $61 per month

• Tamoxifen (taken once a day): PhP 780 or $14 per month

• RT-PCR for radiation therapy: PhP 8,000 or $140 one-time, not per month

B. Living Expenses

• Rent: PhP 4,000 or $70 per month

• Utilities (water, electricity, internet): PhP3,500 or $61 per month

Updated Medical Expense List as of March 2023:

A. Medical Expenses

• Chemo (bone strengthening meds): P6,000 or $115 per session. Assume 6 sessions for now (we don’t know how many will be needed): P36,000 or $680

• Radiotherapy session (P800-1,500) x 10 sessions: P8,000-P15,000 or $150-$280

• Radiation planning (one time): P13,000-20,000 or $245-$370

Thank you for taking the time to read about Cathelyn's situation. Any amount will go a long way. Your prayers are also appreciated. THANK YOU.