Ashley Pelosi-Boyle's Celebration of Life

Hi Everyone,

As many of you know, Ashley (Pelosi) Boyle was diagnosed with Melanoma in March of 2021 and began treating at Moffitt Cancer Center, just months after giving birth to her only child Adelaide Mae. Ashley and her husband, Cody, prepared for the long fight ahead with many unknowns but so much love and support around them.

In May of 2021, Ashley had surgery to remove the site of the first tumor in her back and some lymph nodes in her armpit, which showed the cancer had begun to spread and she was increased to Stage 3b.

After this, she began IV immunotherapy every month as this had less side effects than chemo and a high success rate in Melanoma patients. During this time, she was still able to continue life as normal for the most part but nothing could have prepared us for the battles coming our way.

During her check-ins between March and November, they discovered a small tumor on her Thyroid, which meant the cancer was continuing to spread but they were confident the immunotherapy would treat it.

In November of 2021, Ashley started experiencing intense headaches and was hospitalized at Moffitt. An MRI showed a metastasized tumor in her brain causing the headaches and upgrading her to Stage 4. She also tested positive for the BRAF gene, which causes her to be more susceptible to Melanoma and allows it to grow like wild fire. They doubled up on her Immunotherapy hoping it would shrink the tumor. However, 2 days after Christmas, she was hospitalized again due to the increasingly painful headaches with nausea and vomiting.

During this hospitalization, they found a total of 4 tumors in her brain, which had broken into her blood-brain barrier and infected her spinal fluid, which added the additional diagnosis of Leptomeningeal Disease (LMD).

This news was absolutely devastating for Ashley, Cody, and all those who love them dearly because remission is not possible with LMD and she now became fully disabled. Her Moffitt care team's focus was now on shrinking the tumors and slowing down the spread of the cancer to prolong Ashley's life as long as possible, especially for her sweet Addie Mae who was just about to turn 1.

In January of this year, Ashley had brain surgery to insert an Ommaya Reservoir directly into her brain so they could deliver chemo beyond her blood-brain barrier and into her spinal fluid. She then started whole brain radiation, 2 types of oral chemo with 1 acting as a BRAF inhibitor. After completing 10 rounds of radiation, she then started Intrathecal Chemo directly into her Ommaya once a week.

The next couple of months were filled with lots of ups and downs, the radiation and intense chemo took a toll on Ashley's body. We were luckily able to celebrate Addie's first birthday with an "Addie in Onederland" theme, which is where the picture on this fundraiser came from. We all focused on creating memories and flooding Ashley and Cody with all the love and support we could offer.

Toward the end of February, Ashley had to stop taking the oral chemo because her liver enzymes had become dangerously elevated and they didn't want to risk her going into liver failure. This was worrisome for us all since the pill chemo is her "life raft" as the doctors call it because it keeps the BRAF gene at bay.

At the beginning of March, we got our first win in which an MRI showed the tumors in Ashley's brain were almost completely gone! These results were the boost Ash needed to keep fighting and to not give up! We were so lucky to celebrate with a girl's friend dinner as once again, we didn't know what was ahead.

On March 9th, Ashley fell at home and was suddenly not able to feel her legs after struggling with leg and lower back pain for a few days. She was rushed to St. Joseph's at the direction of Moffitt since they were closer. After 3 days there, doctors found a cluster of tumors in her lower spine which was causing the neuropathy of her pelvis and legs. She was then transferred to Moffitt for further treatment. As you can imagine, this was and still has been beyond scary for Ashley and all.

The doctors at Moffitt confirmed the results of the scan and started her on 5 intense sessions of radiation to her lower spine in hopes of shrinking the tumors. She has now been unable to move her lower body or perform basic daily tasks for 16 days, but she remains strong and hopeful that the tumors are shrinking as she has started to feel some sensations of touch on her legs again.

As of 3/25 she will start her oral chemo again after almost a month off it, which is exciting! Moffitt is also working on transferring her to an inpatient rehab/PT center to help her build her upper body strength in order to be successful in a wheelchair (and just maybe regain some ability to walk but that might be a longer journey.)

Up until this point, Ashley and Cody have been able to have all of their needs met by the huge village of friends and family Ashley has built over her 33 years of life. However, now as we prepare for Ashley to be in a wheelchair and have a new way of life, they are needing some support with unexpected expenses.

Cody is working incredibly hard to modify their home by replacing the carpet with wood floors, getting a special bed that Ashley needs, building a ramp, and making adjustments to ensure Ashley is comfortable and able to thrive at home.

Ashley and Cody are so appreciative for anything you may be able to donate during this incredibly difficult time and cannot express how overwhelmed they feel with all of the love and support they receive on a daily basis. We all know and have seen the last year just how strong Ashley is and she knows there is no giving up. She is ready to continue fighting and get home to her Addie Mae.

Thank you so much for being on this journey with us. <3

Love,

Haley