Anna Akbari: Cancer Sucks, Life Doesn't
Donation protected
Friends and Family! Bryce Dallas Howard here, and this fundraiser is a SUPER personal one for me.
Dr. Anna Akbari has been a huge supporter and friend to me over the past few years, and working with her has led to so much personal and professional growth in my life, I feel so lucky and blessed to know her... and that’s beside the fact that I just wanna be Anna in general!
For anyone who does not know Anna, well, let me just tell you a bit about how incredible this woman is! Not only does she have her Ph.D. in sociology, but she’s also a writer, public speaker, personal performance and happiness coach, entrepreneur, innovation consultant and a mentor.
And that is just laundry-listing all of her professional accomplishments, as she has literally spent her life's work studying and teaching others how to live THEIR best life possible! She is thoughtful, kind, trustworthy, patient, creative, fun, funny...and a karaoke aficionado!
(don't believe me? ...roof top karaoke in Vietnam, folks!)
That's just to mention a FEW of her many qualities!
For those of you who do know her, you also know how generous she is with her time and talents. She is independent and takes responsibility for herself. She is stoic but above all, she’s a giver, not a taker. And because of that, Anna would never think to ask for help from anyone, (I mean, she worked in the Peace Corps for heaven's sake!). So I AM ASKING, as she could really use some support at this time.
Anna was recently diagnosed with a very rare kind of Ovarian Cancer. Back in 2015, Anna had surgery to remove a tumor the size of her head! (no joke, her head!) Just this past December (2018) she had two more back-to-back surgeries to remove another large tumor. The long and the short of it is, that Anna has Stage 2 invasive mucinous ovarian cancer, which only accounts for 3% of cases. If it progresses to stage 3, it is very deadly (25% 5-year survival rate). Her doctors surgically removed what they could see (tumors, pelvis lesions where it had spread, ovaries), but they are worried about the microscopic cells that may cause recurrence.
And now after going through three surgeries, Anna got more bad news. The treatment that is approved by insurance does NOT have good odds. In fact, they are identical to placebo odds. This cancer is literally resistant to chemotherapy.
So that means chemo is not an option.
Anna is forced to seek out alternative private medical care that is not yet covered by insurance.
She needs to move quickly and has already started treatment, out-of-pocket.
As her friend, I feel so helpless. And I’m sure so many of you who know Anna feel the same. But then I realized there is something we can do and that’s why I’m writing to you. If you are able and willing to donate some $$$, please do! Every little bit will help to cover some of these out-of-pocket treatments. Not to mention, the support we can show Anna during this time will help alleviate the stress that comes with the territory of fighting cancer.
If you know of anyone who might be able to donate, it would mean so much if you would forward this information. She is an inspiring young woman with so much life ahead.
Let's join Anna Akbari in her fight to kick cancer’s ass!
As a social scientist, Anna has already done a ton of research. She has written several articles on what she's found so far in the hopes that it could help someone else! How amazing is that!
If you’d like to read a bit more about the discoveries Anna is finding or learn more about her treatments, check out her website.
Much love,
Bryce
Be sure to watch this incredibly smart, thoughtful + creative approach to Anna explaining it all!
GoFundMe Profile Photo credit: Alex J. Berliner/AB Images LLC
Animated Video created by: Andrea Hale
Dr. Anna Akbari has been a huge supporter and friend to me over the past few years, and working with her has led to so much personal and professional growth in my life, I feel so lucky and blessed to know her... and that’s beside the fact that I just wanna be Anna in general!
For anyone who does not know Anna, well, let me just tell you a bit about how incredible this woman is! Not only does she have her Ph.D. in sociology, but she’s also a writer, public speaker, personal performance and happiness coach, entrepreneur, innovation consultant and a mentor.
And that is just laundry-listing all of her professional accomplishments, as she has literally spent her life's work studying and teaching others how to live THEIR best life possible! She is thoughtful, kind, trustworthy, patient, creative, fun, funny...and a karaoke aficionado!
(don't believe me? ...roof top karaoke in Vietnam, folks!)
That's just to mention a FEW of her many qualities!
For those of you who do know her, you also know how generous she is with her time and talents. She is independent and takes responsibility for herself. She is stoic but above all, she’s a giver, not a taker. And because of that, Anna would never think to ask for help from anyone, (I mean, she worked in the Peace Corps for heaven's sake!). So I AM ASKING, as she could really use some support at this time.
Anna was recently diagnosed with a very rare kind of Ovarian Cancer. Back in 2015, Anna had surgery to remove a tumor the size of her head! (no joke, her head!) Just this past December (2018) she had two more back-to-back surgeries to remove another large tumor. The long and the short of it is, that Anna has Stage 2 invasive mucinous ovarian cancer, which only accounts for 3% of cases. If it progresses to stage 3, it is very deadly (25% 5-year survival rate). Her doctors surgically removed what they could see (tumors, pelvis lesions where it had spread, ovaries), but they are worried about the microscopic cells that may cause recurrence.
And now after going through three surgeries, Anna got more bad news. The treatment that is approved by insurance does NOT have good odds. In fact, they are identical to placebo odds. This cancer is literally resistant to chemotherapy.
So that means chemo is not an option.
Anna is forced to seek out alternative private medical care that is not yet covered by insurance.
She needs to move quickly and has already started treatment, out-of-pocket.
As her friend, I feel so helpless. And I’m sure so many of you who know Anna feel the same. But then I realized there is something we can do and that’s why I’m writing to you. If you are able and willing to donate some $$$, please do! Every little bit will help to cover some of these out-of-pocket treatments. Not to mention, the support we can show Anna during this time will help alleviate the stress that comes with the territory of fighting cancer.
If you know of anyone who might be able to donate, it would mean so much if you would forward this information. She is an inspiring young woman with so much life ahead.
Let's join Anna Akbari in her fight to kick cancer’s ass!
As a social scientist, Anna has already done a ton of research. She has written several articles on what she's found so far in the hopes that it could help someone else! How amazing is that!
If you’d like to read a bit more about the discoveries Anna is finding or learn more about her treatments, check out her website.
Much love,
Bryce
Be sure to watch this incredibly smart, thoughtful + creative approach to Anna explaining it all!
GoFundMe Profile Photo credit: Alex J. Berliner/AB Images LLC
Animated Video created by: Andrea Hale
Organizer and beneficiary
Bryce Dallas Howard
Organizer
Los Angeles, CA
Anna Akbari
Beneficiary
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