Andy Kennedy - The Journey to Beat Cancer

Andy Kennedy.  Saying his name out loud makes you smile.  Admit it, you're smiling now!  Saying Andy has cancer is like a punch in the gut.  The air knocked out.  In January this year, Andy received  that punch; he was diagnosed with throat cancer.  The lump he felt on the side of his neck confirmed.  Further tests confirmed that the cancer cells had begun to spread to the other side of his throat as well.  January 23, Andy underwent 8+ hours of surgery to remove the tumor on his right side and as much of the cancer cells on the left.  Cut from ear to ear, Andy, in true AK form, maintaining his sense of humor, commented after surgery he looked like a pez dispenser!  
The hard part was just beginning. . . Enduring the trach, feeding tube, drain tubes, & other tubes over the next few weeks, Andy healed enough to begin radiation and chemo in March.  Qualifying for a very aggressive, but effective, trial treatment consisting of radiation twice per day and chemo twice per week, he made the daily trip to Rochester.  Though the treatment drained him physically, Andy is an incredibly strong man and refused anything stronger than Tylenol from the day of surgery through the entire 2 weeks of treatment.  
In the weeks following surgery and again after treatment, there were a few emergency return trips to Mayo, each landing Andy back in the hospital for days at a time.  The prognosis looks great though, Andy is incredibly resilient and has a force of family and friends supporting him.
During this time our goal is to let Andy put all his energy & focus on healing; it would be great to alleviate the mental stress & anxiety of the financial burden resulting from this diagnosis.  

Much love and gratitude from Andy and all our family.