Aaron Coates Memorial Fund
Donation protected
My sweet, irreplaceable brother Aaron Coates passed away peacefully on 01/22/2022 at 3:48pm MST, surrounded by family and friends Thank you all for your love and support as we journeyed with Aaron these 2 years! You are our guardian angels.
https://www.inmemoriamservices.com/obituary/Aaron-Coates
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Anyone who knows my brother, Aaron Coates, knows just how incredible he is. He is one of the kindest people you will ever meet and has so much compassion for others. He is also a fighter, a son, a brother, and a friend to many.
In October of 2019, Aaron started to notice some unusual pain and swelling in his right foot. By January, the unusual lump had grown to the size of a golf ball, and on January 8th, 2020 Aaron was diagnosed with synovial sarcoma.
Synovial sarcoma is an extremely rare and aggressive soft tissue cancer - only 1 to 3 individuals in a million people are diagnosed with this disease each year in the US. It does not run in families.
After being diagnosed, Aaron started an aggressive five rounds of chemotherapy. The goal was to shrink the tumor in his foot so that doctors could safely remove it via surgery. Unfortunately, the tumor did not shrink and had instead spread to his lymph nodes. His doctors recommended that the foot be amputated to prevent it from spreading any further. So on June 9th, 2020, Aaron underwent a below-the-knee amputation surgery. He also had an additional two surgeries that were done in addition to this procedure - including removal of the lymph nodes where the cancer had spread. This surgery is, understandably, a life changing one.
Following the surgery, it had seemed that things were starting to look bright again - post-op scans showed that all the cancer had been removed. He got to ring the "cancer free" bell and, for a while, we had our hope back. We thought he was finally cancer free, and that he could start to get his life back.
Unfortunately, a CT scan in mid-October revealed that the cancer had returned. There were tumors in his lungs, one of which that was 2 cm and right next to his heart. It was clear that treatment needed to begin right away. We had hoped that his blood carried a specific antigen (HLA-A*0201) that was needed to qualify for immunotherapy trials. Sadly, his blood did not. Aaron was then placed on a maintenance chemo med that was supposed to stop/slow the growth of the tumor.
But by late November, another very noticeable lump appeared in his right leg, right above where the amputation was. The doctors performed an MRI on Aaron on December 11th and we were absolutely devastated to have learned that there were (and still are) tumors in Aaron's legs and in his lungs. A PET scan was ordered and on December 23rd, right before Christmas, it showed even worse results.
The tumor in his lungs near his heart has tripled from 2 cm to 6 cm, all in just 3 months time.
On Christmas Eve, Aaron began to start feeling chest pains due to the tumor pressing on his heart.
Since this cancer is growing so fast, his doctors have taken him off his chemo medication and have immediately started doing in-patient treatment for him back at The University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. His first round began on January 5th, 2021 and lasted six days - almost exactly a year from his initial diagnosis (January 8th, 2020). Aaron is now on a two-week break from chemo, and then he'll have to go back to CU for one more intense round. He will meet with the oncologist to discuss further treatment options. That could mean radiation, surgery, or more chemo, we are not sure yet. We are just praying that the treatments will start to work, and that Aaron will be as pain-free as possible.
Despite his terrible prognosis, Aaron still manages to inspire others. He continues to smile everyday, and hey, his sense of humor is great these days. He continues to fight for his life and he's truly an army of his own. No one ever deserves to go through this.
Due to the severity of Aaron's diagnosis, Aaron and Cherie/Mom have been unable to work this past year. The unexpected finances have created additional stress to an already traumatic situation, and Brad/Dad has been the sole breadwinner to keep up with all the unforeseen bills. My sister Allison and I have been helping our parents in any way we can, but we have all been in therapy to cope and those costs have also taken a financial toll on the family.
Any donation is greatly appreciated as our family's expenses continue to grow. All donations will be used towards medical bills, groceries, transportation to and from the hospital, and self care. I understand not everyone will be able to help financially, but in light of sarcoma awareness thank you so much for reading this!
Here's a link to my brother being awesome: https://kdvr.com/news/health/cancer-patient-hopes-personal-experience-will-inspire-other-to-help-fertility-support-group/
https://www.inmemoriamservices.com/obituary/Aaron-Coates
——————————————————————————
Anyone who knows my brother, Aaron Coates, knows just how incredible he is. He is one of the kindest people you will ever meet and has so much compassion for others. He is also a fighter, a son, a brother, and a friend to many.
In October of 2019, Aaron started to notice some unusual pain and swelling in his right foot. By January, the unusual lump had grown to the size of a golf ball, and on January 8th, 2020 Aaron was diagnosed with synovial sarcoma.
Synovial sarcoma is an extremely rare and aggressive soft tissue cancer - only 1 to 3 individuals in a million people are diagnosed with this disease each year in the US. It does not run in families.
After being diagnosed, Aaron started an aggressive five rounds of chemotherapy. The goal was to shrink the tumor in his foot so that doctors could safely remove it via surgery. Unfortunately, the tumor did not shrink and had instead spread to his lymph nodes. His doctors recommended that the foot be amputated to prevent it from spreading any further. So on June 9th, 2020, Aaron underwent a below-the-knee amputation surgery. He also had an additional two surgeries that were done in addition to this procedure - including removal of the lymph nodes where the cancer had spread. This surgery is, understandably, a life changing one.
Following the surgery, it had seemed that things were starting to look bright again - post-op scans showed that all the cancer had been removed. He got to ring the "cancer free" bell and, for a while, we had our hope back. We thought he was finally cancer free, and that he could start to get his life back.
Unfortunately, a CT scan in mid-October revealed that the cancer had returned. There were tumors in his lungs, one of which that was 2 cm and right next to his heart. It was clear that treatment needed to begin right away. We had hoped that his blood carried a specific antigen (HLA-A*0201) that was needed to qualify for immunotherapy trials. Sadly, his blood did not. Aaron was then placed on a maintenance chemo med that was supposed to stop/slow the growth of the tumor.
But by late November, another very noticeable lump appeared in his right leg, right above where the amputation was. The doctors performed an MRI on Aaron on December 11th and we were absolutely devastated to have learned that there were (and still are) tumors in Aaron's legs and in his lungs. A PET scan was ordered and on December 23rd, right before Christmas, it showed even worse results.
The tumor in his lungs near his heart has tripled from 2 cm to 6 cm, all in just 3 months time.
On Christmas Eve, Aaron began to start feeling chest pains due to the tumor pressing on his heart.
Since this cancer is growing so fast, his doctors have taken him off his chemo medication and have immediately started doing in-patient treatment for him back at The University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. His first round began on January 5th, 2021 and lasted six days - almost exactly a year from his initial diagnosis (January 8th, 2020). Aaron is now on a two-week break from chemo, and then he'll have to go back to CU for one more intense round. He will meet with the oncologist to discuss further treatment options. That could mean radiation, surgery, or more chemo, we are not sure yet. We are just praying that the treatments will start to work, and that Aaron will be as pain-free as possible.
Despite his terrible prognosis, Aaron still manages to inspire others. He continues to smile everyday, and hey, his sense of humor is great these days. He continues to fight for his life and he's truly an army of his own. No one ever deserves to go through this.
Due to the severity of Aaron's diagnosis, Aaron and Cherie/Mom have been unable to work this past year. The unexpected finances have created additional stress to an already traumatic situation, and Brad/Dad has been the sole breadwinner to keep up with all the unforeseen bills. My sister Allison and I have been helping our parents in any way we can, but we have all been in therapy to cope and those costs have also taken a financial toll on the family.
Any donation is greatly appreciated as our family's expenses continue to grow. All donations will be used towards medical bills, groceries, transportation to and from the hospital, and self care. I understand not everyone will be able to help financially, but in light of sarcoma awareness thank you so much for reading this!
Here's a link to my brother being awesome: https://kdvr.com/news/health/cancer-patient-hopes-personal-experience-will-inspire-other-to-help-fertility-support-group/
Organizer and beneficiary
Ashley Coates
Organizer
Westminster, CO
Aaron Coates
Beneficiary