My name is Sandra and I need your help with providing my brother in law Mark with lifesaving cancer therapy.

The Medical Story

In May of 2016, at the age of 53, Mark was diagnosed with stage IV esophageal cancer.


Mark needed a PET scan to find more accurately where all the cancer was and the only place he could get one without waiting 6 months to a year was at a private clinic. Thankfully friends helped to pay for the scan at a private clinic, without these friends the rest of this story could not have been written.

The tumor in his esophagus extended into his stomach, metastasized into the surrounding lymph nodes and there was a spot on his liver, it was squamous cell carcinoma. The doctors at the British Columbia Cancer Agency in both Abbotsford and Surrey told them it was an untreatable form of stage IV cancer and he was given a dismal prognosis.

Mark was initially booked for 20 treatments of radiation therapy he only received 10 and was denied standard chemotherapy because it would not prolong his life. We were told Mark had 2 years to live at best. Because of his inability to swallow, a stomach tube would be needed to deliver his nutrition until he died.

It was at Mark's PET Scan appointment at the private clinic my sister noticed a small card sitting on table with the name Cancer Treatment Options and Management Inc. (CTOAM), a cancer treatment consultation company that offers advanced diagnostics and treatment support.  She decided to pick up the card and turn it over to the trusted friend for further research. Before we knew it, this amazing friend arranged a meeting with Alex Roland to completely check this company out and make sure it was all legitimate

Mark and Sharon were then introduced to Alex Roland, the outstanding treatment specialist at CTOAM. You can check them out at http://www.ctoam.com/   He took them step by step through the process, was available day and night, an incredible source of support and a wealth of information. Not only did CTOMA help them through all the steps but they also provided a nutritionist that helped create a diet specific to Mark's situation. They also connected Mark to a new local doctor, Dr. P Klimo, who has partnered with CTOAM and is in full support of this treatment.   Dr. Klimo would now follow Mark through his immunotherapy treatments and get Mark any care the BC medical system would pay for.

After a biopsy and bloodwork by CTOAM Mark was placed on an advanced form of immunotherapy that has resulted in a dramatic response.  The tumor in Mark's esophagus that extended into his stomach is now gone and the cells in his lymph nodes were no longer detectable so thankfully a stomach tube is no longer necessary. That is right I said gone!!  The immunotherapy was working!

Mark had an esophagus stint inserted so the scarring from the tumor would no longer impede his eating.  This surgery was performed in BC, which was covered by BC medical but the immunotherapy drug, which is saving his life, is not. The cancer in Mark’s liver is still detectable and Mark needs more treatments to make sure the cancer goes into remission and even possibly eradicated by his own pumped up immune system!

Here is where the problem comes in. British Columbia's medical system does not cover immunotherapy for this type of cancer.  Immunotherapy has shown so much promise in the treatment of cancer in the US, shouldn’t more be done in Canada? Currently the only place we are aware that is even looking at immunotherapy is in the University of Alberta Hospital. They unfortunately are only at the beginning stages. We understand that they want to make sure these drugs meet our standards but the process has too much red tape and is ridiculously lengthy. It will likely take another 5 years before they begin trials in Canada. We are both angry and frustrated for Mark and anyone else in his situation because 5 years from now would be much, much too late for him and others.

How You Can Help!

As of March 18, 2017 Mark requires 10 more immunotherapy treatments to eliminate the tumors in his liver at a cost of $8000 dollars each. My sister is the only one working and so far these lifesaving treatments have cost over 90,000 dollars. We are hoping to raise a total of $100,000 dollars to help with treatment and care costs.

Photo: Mark's grandson Adam

We would like to thank you for taking the time to read my story and for any help you can offer.   Please share Mark’s story with others, you never know, someone in the same situation could benefit.

More about the Family

I know this has been a bit of a read but if you are willing to indulge this typing queen a little further I would like to tell you my very selfish reasons for so desperately wanting to see Mark make it through this. Mark is a father of 1, a step father of 3, a foster dad of 2, an uncle to 3 and a grandparent to 7. As much as I want to see Mark's life saved for the sake of Mark, I also want to see his life saved for the sake of the rest of us. But mostly I want to save Mark's life for my sister.

You see this is not the first time my sister has had to get down on her hands and knees and beg for help. Sadly the first time was with her youngest son Shawn.

Tragically at the tender age of 10 Shawn suddenly got sick. I was at work in Alberta when I got the phone call. On the other end of the phone was my sobbing beat down sister who quietly said Shawn is in the hospital and his body is shutting down and they don't know why, he is dying.

Eventually the Doctors figured out that Shawn suffered from a very rare auto immune disease called Good Pastures Syndrome. Because Shawn was so young and still growing there has been horrendous amounts of complications, surgeries, a kidney transplant (donated by his Uncle Bruce) and more.

Shawn's life is constantly in danger, four years ago his transplanted kidney stopped working so he continues on dialysis and takes so many pills in a day I can't even count them all. He desperately needs another kidney but because of all his complications family can't donate. He is one of the rarest recipient types and we have been told there is a high probability he will not get a kidney. We all know what this means, because we all know you can't live on dialysis for a prolonged period of time.

Almost daily we research and keep up with new medical technology that could possibly help Shawn. Unfortunately kidney donations are minimal so my sister (and the rest of us) constantly wait for advancements in growing a human kidney in hopes that Shawn can go into a trial. Shawn has thankfully made it this far, but Sharon is not naive enough to know that the clock is running out for her son. So she is not just working hard to save Mark's life but she is trying to save her son as well. I know right now this is about saving Mark but if you have gotten this far in the story you should consider donating a kidney to someone in need. You can find more information here if you are interested https://www.kidney.ca/living-donation .  

 My sister was divorced by the time Shawn was 2, she was going through this on her own. But even with all of this on her plate she still wanted to help others; so  my sister being my sister added 2 foster children to her home.  Shortly after adding these 2 children, my very brave brother in law Mark came into the picture. I was so thankful that she had someone to be there for her.

Photo:  Mark's grandson Nate and his litter sister Aubrey.  Nate has said Papa Mark so many times he will never forget who he is!

Mark came in to a house full of children with lots of needs that were always going to come before his own and he jumped in with both feet. Papa Mark, as his grandkids call him, has not only been there for my sister, the kids and his grandchildren, but has forged and created unique bonds with all of us that are irreplaceable.

I do not want my sister to suffer any more than she already has. I don't want her to constantly wake up every day having to find ways to fight to save the people she loves. I don't want her to have any more anxiety attacks, hear her cry, watch her collapse full of helplessness, struggling to make every day normal and happy or feeling guilty for enjoying joyful moments.

Mark has been there for so many, even my children. I am in the middle of adopting 2 little boys as a single parent. My boys who have now been with me for 4 years had suffered a lifetime of horrors before coming to be with me.   But now they have a new family who loves them so much. Almost every day they ask when we are moving to BC (we have to wait until the adoption is finished before we can move). We spend every summer and most Christmases in BC with Uncle Mark and Auntie Sharon.
Mark is the one stable man they have in their life that they trust. I am not young enough or foolish enough to not understand how important a male role model is for little boys. Mark is that role model. So Mark not only took on my sister and her unique situation but now mine as well. My sons are too young to deal with another loss or any more pain and when we move there this summer they need their Uncle to be there. I need him to be here.

So you see, we all need Mark! I just can't and won't accept more of my family being hurt. So please help me save his life. Please help me protect the ones I love. I can't give you much but I can give my gratitude and a promise that Mark's life will have more meaning than you can ever imagine.