Bone Cancer Treatment For A 14 Year Old

Hey there! My name is Shawn Amick and I am trying to raise $50,000 for the treatment of Spindle Cell Sarcoma--a rare form of bone cancer that often results in amputations as a means for treatment--for my 14 year old cousin, Savannah Amick.

Why $50,000 ? Because the American healthcare system, by design, uses actual emergencies and the unimaginable pain felt by families amid crisis to create an everlasting debtor's prison. For instance . . .

AARP, in 2018, noted the average treatment for cancer across over 55,000 patients was around $150,000. That was before Covid and inflation . . . so it's only gotten worse.

Now, those costs can be lower or much higher depending on the form of cancer being treated. Spindle Cell Sarcoma, especially occuring in a child like Savannah, represents less than 1% of cases. It's already been determined that she will require both surgery and 25 sessions of radition across a five week period, and will likely require chemo.

Beyond the thousands of dollars her parents--Adam and Andrea--will need to pay just to hit the co-pay, the family will be responsible for 20% of the total cost following the deductible (roughly $30K going off the national average, assuming it doesn't go beyond that cost.)

Add on the deductible to that and we are closer to $35K. And, as you can imagine, this puts a dent in careers. Andrea won't be working for at least the next two months, likely longer, and she is maxing out the small vacation and sick days she has to do that.

Did I mention the hospital is two hours away from them? They will be living in a hotel during this entire time, having to prepare food outside of the home or eat out, paying for supplies for essential living, gas for travel when they can, and much, much more.

None of this is even touching the aftercare, the medication, the physical therapy, or all of the other factors that will come into play.

In essence, $50,000 doesn't cover it, but it covers a large portion and honestly, anything helps.

Savannah is a great kid. She keeps to herself mostly, other than her two best friends she loves. She spends a lot of time at a skating rink and other places she can hang out with her friends (even though she doesn't care much for skating.)

As her father says, "She's a girly girl," but she will go out hunting "if there are no shops around." She helps raise the animals they keep: chickens, goats, ducks, dogs, cats, and she loves tending a garden.

Savannah wants to be a cosmetologist. She loves making others feel beautiful . . . and I want to make sure she feels loved, and that her family is taken care of.

So please. Help Savannah. If we are lucky enough to surpass the goal of this campaign, anything raised beyond the costs of treatment, medicine, aftercare and all that will come, will be immediately donated to a charity furthering cancer research.