Raising money for medical, travel, life costs due to Cancer

Cancer … one single word that can completely crush a person and causes so much pain and fear. Life is precious and you never really know when something awful and unexpected is going to happen.

Hello, my name is Michelle and with the kind support and help from my employer Cascades we are asking for your help in raising funds to help with potential medical & Travel expenses and the day-to-day expenses for my husband and I while he husband fights his battle with Cancer.

Here is a glimpse of our story.

Starting around November/December 2023 my husband Matt was having issues with severe heartburn and at times food was hurting when he ate, but we thought it was diet related first and tried changing up things, gluten free, none spicy, nothing processed etc. but nothing seemed to work. Around March 2024 things were just getting worse and so we booked an appointment with the Dr. to get a referral for an upper and lower scope and see what was going on. We were told it would several months before Matt could get a scope done to see what was going on, so we left it and got Matt on the waiting list. Then his health began to decline, he lost weight rapidly and Matt was finding he was tired all the time and didn't have the strength to do much of anything. Then in April 2024 Matt ended up in Emergency because of severe pain from eating something at a staff BBQ. Matt finally got his scope done in May 2024, but by that time he had lost 60+ lbs. and was just getting worse. About a week or so after the hospital visit Matt finally got in for his Scopes and the Dr's discovered a Tumor that was covering a large portion of his esophagus and sent a sample for biopsy. Fast forward a couple weeks and we were given news that no one ever wants to hear...you (my husband) have Cancer. My husband ended up being diagnosed with lower esophageal cancer (Adenocarcinomas).

Matt is a hardworking man who is also as stubborn as they come and so he continued to work for as long as he physically could, and Cascades (our employer) were amazing at accommodating him for as long as possible but eventually it became too much, he deteriorated so quickly partially because he was working hard and eating so little, so we made the decision that it was time for him to leave a job he loved and go onto Medical EI. Now our finances have been significantly reduced by almost $800/month, but of course our bills and payment obligations don't go away just because our income has changed.

Due to my husband's food/nourishment limits we have to purchase high calorie/protein meal replacement drinks so Matt's body stops deteriorating or at least slows down, and at $80+ for 24 bottles of a high protein/calorie meal replacement is a lot when you consider he should be consuming at least 2 or 3 of those a day to maintain his health and we still need to purchase regular food but as more and more food becomes difficult to eat he will have to rely on liquid meal replacements almost completely which can get expensive. With Cancer sometimes comes travel, not just in town but sometimes out of town when a service is not available in town. For example, at the end of June 2024 we had to travel to Kelowna for a PET scan which could not be done here in Prince George, and that trip cost us around $400 just in fuel, not including food or other expenses. Of course we are hoping we will not have to travel, but if we do with our current $800 deficit, we will not be able to afford it and keep up with everyday expenses. Also once Matt starts his Cancer treatment there will be medication for pain, nausea etc.