Alesha's Fight Against Pancreatic Cancer

Hi, my name is Megan and this is my cousins beautiful family!

As many of you already know, Alesha was recently diagnosed with stage 1B pancreatic cancer and has began the fight for her life. Her family needs your help.

On September 29, Alesha rushed to the ER doubled over in pain, for a mass to be found on her pancreas.

Fast forward past all the scans, biopsies, and appointments, Alesha was diagnosed with Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma. Unfortunately, this is a very aggressive and dangerous form of cancer. Thankfully her tumor was operable, half of her pancreas was removed, along with her spleen, one adrenal gland, and surrounding lymph nodes. Her surgery took place this past Thursday and what was projected to take no more than 3 hours, ended 8 hours later. Some areas were swollen and enlarged presenting challenges that made the surgery more difficult. Alesha is currently on the acute care surgery floor at MCV VCU recovering. She has been in a lot of pain with diaphragm spasms and intense cramping. The current plan after recovering from surgery is 12 rounds of intense chemotherapy (roughly 6 months), each round is 2 weeks. Day 1 will consist of 3 drugs, then following 2 of the 3 will be pushed at home for 2 days. After that 11 days of recovery and 3 straight days of chemo. They are still however waiting on results from pathology. Please say a prayer that the results are good, with no signs of metastases.

Alesha has a warrior's spirit and so much to fight for. She's a devoted mother to four beautiful children and a loving wife with a huge heart. Alesha is willing to do whatever it takes to extend her life for the sake of her family. She has the desire to fight this battle but her family needs our help. She has been unable to work since August which has greatly impacted their financial situation. Medical bills I'm sure will start to appear at some point, however their daily living expenses are quickly becoming an issue. Unfortunately even when you receive devastating, life altering news, life continues. Bills still have to be paid and doing so unexpectedly on one income is a daunting task. Her husband has already been forced to take a loan out just to be able to keep there household going. Being very up-front in saying that this is going to be a uphill battle and no-one knows for how long. I'm hoping friends and family can join me in rising funds to help Alesha's family make ends meet, while she fights the battle for her life. All funds will go directly to Alesha to keep her home a float while she is unable to work during her treatment. We can't change this horrible situation but we can come together to help relieve some of the financial burden that follows with any cancer diagnoses. My hope is to lessen the household stress during the next six months of chemotherapy treatment.

We need your support now. I know first hand the effects cancer has on the entire family and on so many levels. Worrying about finances is a burden families shouldn't have to carry while their loved one is fighting for their life.

We are deeply grateful for the outpour of love, support, and prayers during this time. If you can please continue to pray for Alesha's comfort and for God to restore her health. The fact that her tumor was operable, giving her a fighting chance, is a huge blessing in itself! God is already working, we surrender and trust his plan.

If you are able, any contribution will go a long way in helping Alesha and her family. Alesha is a fighter and she will win! We believe this to our core. Thank you for being a part of our support network as we face and overcome this challenge together!

With heartfelt gratitude I thank you,

Megan