My name is Scott. My wife and I are both battling cancer. That's right; we are simultaneously under treatment. I was diagnosed in March 2018, and my wife, Shareeka, was diagnosed in September 2020.
I was diagnosed with non-small cell carcinoma. My disease was rather aggressive when I was initially diagnosed. At first, my only symptom was back pain near my kidney. I thought it was a kidney stone as I passed one several years ago, and the pain felt similar. I went to my urologist, who ordered a CT scan to confirm my suspicions. I was right; it was a rather large kidney stone, but there was also a huge mass behind the left kidney. A biopsy was ordered, and it turned out to be cancer. I was immediately put on chemo, but it almost took me out. I had a very bad reaction to the chemo and ended up septic in the hospital. If that weren't bad enough, I also developed a severe case of diverticulitis. My oncologist sent additional biopsies for genetic testing when I was diagnosed. A relatively new drug that the genetic testing determined might work had just hit the market. I was put on Keytruda and it literally saved my life. It's been 4 years now and by the grace of God and the amazing scientists at Merck Laboratories, I am still here. My disease is still present. My tumors haven't shrunken but they also aren't growing, I am what they call 'stable'. I will continue to be on Keytruda as my insurance company approved my treatment plan until July 2023.
Fast forward to September 2020...my wife stayed on top of her yearly mammograms and unfortunately, they found cancer. She was subsequently diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer. She made the decision, which I completely supported, to get a double mastectomy. They also removed several lymph nodes that showed signs of being infected. She was put on chemo and as grueling as that was, she fought like warrior without any major side effects. After her treatment was completed, she continued to get scans which showed the disease was slowly shrinking. In June of this year, just 6 months ago, her scans were clean! We were so excited, she beat her disease!
Just after Labor Day, she began to have a really nagging cough. We tried several OTC medications with no luck. We thought we had finally been bit by the covid bug as neither one of us has caught the dreaded disease. She went to her PCP who suggested she go to the ER so they could get a CT scan of her chest. She had to wait over 12 hours but they finally got the scan completed. The results were very hard to hear. Not only did she have blood clots in her lungs but her lymph nodes in her chest were enlarged. A biopsy was ordered and the results showed that her breast cancer had not only returned but did so with a vengence! Our oncologist ordered scans of her entire body to see if the disease would be found elsewhere. The results showed that the cancer had matastisized to her brain, spine and sternum. Our care team decided they would treat the cancer in her brain first as it was the most concerning area. She underwent radiation treatment to her spine, sternum and brain. Chemo was scheduled to beging shortly after the last radiation treatment to give her body a chance to recover. The radiation really took a toll on her as she was very sick. Right before I was put on Keytruda, I too underwent radiation treatment so I remember how it made me feel. I cannot put into words the toll radiation takes on the human body. It is the absolute worst feeling you could ever imagine.
On Nov 29th, I took her in for her first chemo visit. She was still very weak from the radiation but we were both so excited to finally begin chemo as it was the last arrow in our quiver to fight her disease. During the office visit, the nurses weren't able to read her blood pressure as her pulse was very weak. Our oncologist had his nurses call an ambulance to take her over to the hospital. He wanted to see if she had any infections and to also get new scans.
The cancer has completely taken over her body as it is now in her liver and also in her lungs. She is now on hospice and has been given about a month to live. I just typed that and I am still in shock. She is home now and is so very weak and tired. The folks at the hospice company are absolutely amazing! I think most of us have major misconceptions of hospice and the people who work for those companies.
Life can be so amazing at times and yet be so damned cruel at other times. We've been married just 5 years and the majority of this time has been at both the infusion center and with one checked into t he hospital. My wife shared with me this morning that at one point, they only gave me 6 months to live. Since the chemo didn't work and made me so sick I needed a miracle. I got my miracle with Keytruda. unfortunately no such drug is available for her breast cancer. This is one of those cruel life moments I just mentioned. Her cancer is one of the worst types of cancer to get because it's so damn aggressive. So imagine that, our children, ages 32, 29, 23 & 19, could have lost both of us to cancer...that's just cruel!
I am doing all I can to make the time we have together, and as a family, as memorable as possible for everyone. I created this fundraiser in an effort to put money together to help me with the expenses that are coming my way and to make sure I am able to make my wife's last wishes are not just met but exceeded!
If you took the time to read this, I thank you. I thank you for your time and encourage you to listen to your body and if something ever feels off, go and get it checked out. Both of us caught our diseases early because we listened to the symptoms. Sadly, her disease turned out to be more than her body and modern medicine, could contain...cruel!
-Scott R. Parker, Sr.