Amber's Cancer Fund
Donation protected
Amber Tidwell is an 18 year old girl attending High School in La Porte, TX. She lives at home with her parents, Shannon and Kenneth Burk, and her sisters, Jessica Tidwell and Briana Burk. After complaints of ongoing, painful swelling in her right jaw, and being misdiagnosed with an abscessed tooth, her parents sought a second opinion.
On September 19, Amber was diagnosed with Chrondoblastic Osteosarcoma. The initial biopsy indicated a tumor had formed in her upper right jaw, and subsequent scans indicated the cancer had spread to the bone under her right eye.
Osteosarcoma of the jaw is a rare, aggressive malignant tumor. Jaw osteosarcomas usually present in 3rd and 4th decades of life; Amber is the youngest patient to be diagnosed with it.
To treat the cancer, she will undergo several surgeries, during which they will remove the bone supporting her eye down to the bones in the right side of her face and jaw. Doctors will then reconstruct her face using donor bone from her leg.
Following the surgery, she will be tube fed for 4-5 months, and will have to rehab her ability to swallow and speak. Future surgeries will include facial and dental implants, and plans for chemo and/or radiation treatments are still being discussed.
Please show your support for Amber and her family, and help us raise money for the surgery, treatments, and ongoing care she will be facing over the next year.
There will be a Happy Hour to help raise funds for Amber. The event will be held on October 16 at Cottonwood Bar from 6 to 9pm. We are also working on organizing a benefit or volleyball tournament to raise additional funds. Details will follow.
We are grateful for any donations and appreciate your care, concern and prayers.
On September 19, Amber was diagnosed with Chrondoblastic Osteosarcoma. The initial biopsy indicated a tumor had formed in her upper right jaw, and subsequent scans indicated the cancer had spread to the bone under her right eye.
Osteosarcoma of the jaw is a rare, aggressive malignant tumor. Jaw osteosarcomas usually present in 3rd and 4th decades of life; Amber is the youngest patient to be diagnosed with it.
To treat the cancer, she will undergo several surgeries, during which they will remove the bone supporting her eye down to the bones in the right side of her face and jaw. Doctors will then reconstruct her face using donor bone from her leg.
Following the surgery, she will be tube fed for 4-5 months, and will have to rehab her ability to swallow and speak. Future surgeries will include facial and dental implants, and plans for chemo and/or radiation treatments are still being discussed.
Please show your support for Amber and her family, and help us raise money for the surgery, treatments, and ongoing care she will be facing over the next year.
There will be a Happy Hour to help raise funds for Amber. The event will be held on October 16 at Cottonwood Bar from 6 to 9pm. We are also working on organizing a benefit or volleyball tournament to raise additional funds. Details will follow.
We are grateful for any donations and appreciate your care, concern and prayers.
Organizer
Tiffany Burk
Organizer
Houston, TX
