Danielle's Metastatic Breast Cancer Treatment Fund

Please read the most recent updates below. Danielle has had progression in two areas and will be starting a new, more aggressive treatment on Friday September 11, 2020.



DANIELLE'S STORY
"It’s back!"
These are the words every cancer patient fears. Unfortunately, exactly two years since her Stage II breast cancer diagnosis at only 33 my best friend, and single mother of three, was told just that. Her breast cancer was back despite having done everything right. She had already completed eight rounds of chemotherapy; had a double mastectomy, 30 doses of radiation, and eight doses of oral chemotherapy. The cancer was back, and this time it was no longer confined to the breast. It had spread to the lungs, lung tree, and surrounding lymph nodes. Danielle’s cancer was now Metastatic, Stage IV, incurable.
No Room for Error
As if Metastatic Breast Cancer wasn’t enough, Danielle has faced numerous set backs and medical errors. In March 2019 she underwent a biopsy to determine if her lung nodule was cancerous. To her surprise and great relief, her medical team told her the nodule was benign, non-malignant. It was not cancer!
However, later that week her team had to explain that they were incorrect and it was in fact malignant. This was the beginning of a long series of set backs.

Danielle then underwent another biopsy to get more information about the type of breast cancer she would be treating. She received surprising but exciting news: her cancer was no longer Triple Negative (TNBC) as it was with her early stage diagnosis. It had mutated into an estrogen positive sub-type that had more treatment options than TNBC.

You can never have enough opinions, so although Danielle was having significant financial difficulties, she used what little money she had to fly to New York to one of the top cancer centers in the world, Sloan Kettering. They reviewed her medical information and recommended a new treatment plan. Danielle flew back home and transferred her care from a small local hospital to large university research hospital in Atlanta.
Her new treatment began. Danielle started ovarian suppression. At only 35 she began injections to have her ovaries shut down and was forced into sudden menopause. She also began taking a pill that would stop the rest of her endocrine system from producing estrogen, and a second pill that was supposed to interfere with the growth and spread of estrogen positive cancer cells. It was rough, but a young mother would do anything for more time with her children.

Fast forward three months later when Danielle had her first PET scan since her Stage IV recurrence. Not only did the scan show no regression, it showed the cancer had grown and spread during those three months. Something wasn’t right, so Danielle had to endure yet another biopsy.
The results were dumbfounding. The original biopsy was incorrect. Her cancer was still Triple Negative. Danielle had been being treated with the wrong medications for three months, allowing her cancer to grow and spread to four new places in her bones.
Current Treatment Plan
Now that Danielle’s cancer is Stage IV, she will be in treatment for the rest of her life. Every week she makes the hour commute to Atlanta to spend the entire day receiving two different IV chemotherapy infusions. She has countless appointments with her Oncology team, labs, and infusions to help strengthen her cancer riddled bones. The hope is that this combination of therapies will slow down the cancer and maybe even stop it all together for some time. The only way to know if this new plan is working is to wait another three months for yet another PET scan.

Eventually, this chemo will stop working and Danielle will have to try another treatment such as immunotherapy and clinical trials. These are not always covered by insurance and would likely cause Danielle further financial hardships.
When it Rains, it Pours
Cancer leads to many problems for young patients, well beyond health concerns: fertility issues, career difficulties, marital strain, emotional stress, and financial burdens.

Divorce rates for young cancer survivors are almost double that of couples not facing this diagnosis. The strain of the disease and lack of support through treatment became too much for Danielle, and in September 2018 she divorced and became the primary support for her three young children.
Though she tried, Danielle could no longer balance being a full-time teacher, a full-time single mother of three very young children, and a full-time metastatic breast cancer patient. One of these things had to give, and work was forced to take a backseat to the weekly chemo sessions, regular appointments, and side effects of treatment. On October 11, Danielle said goodbye to her students, her classroom, and her teaching career.

Finances were tough before Danielle was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. She was working two jobs to make ends meet. Then came the added costs of multiple biopsies, office visit co-pays, flights for second opinions, and countless medication co-pays. The first day Danielle was officially unemployed she applied for disability. Unfortunately, for the first six months she will only receive supplemental income, which is less than half of what her monthly paycheck was. Even once she gets her full payment in Spring of 2020, it will be $600 less than her previous income. Add to this the child support for her three children, and Danielle will still be in the red at the end of each month.

A Simple Dream
Danielle’s current living arrangements, as modest as they are, are not sustainable. She is currently living in an area with limited support. The extremely hot and humid weather in Atlanta makes breathing with cancer in her lungs even more difficult. Her house payment and utilities now max out her budget even after recent attempts to refinance.

Danielle is working diligently to make a move West where she will have more support and weather that will make it easier for her to breathe outdoors. She is researching tiny houses and hoping to find one that is affordable and suitable for her family. Her hopes are to sell her current home, finance a tiny house with a smaller mortgage, and rent a small plot of land somewhere in Northern California or Colorado by next year.

How the Donations will be Used
She will use your generous donations to help with utilities, house payments, car payments, groceries, medical bills, medications, and gas to get to and from treatment.

Other Ways You Can Help
Danielle has chemotherapy every Monday, and she spends the majority of the day in treatment. Gift cards for restaurants that would allow her to pick up meals for the family would be beneficial as well as having a meal delivered to her home. Gift cards for gas, groceries, and other necessities would also be very helpful. 

A Message from Danielle
As a stage IV patient, I am in treatment for life, and the toll that frequent chemotherapy takes on the body is significant. My goal is to be an Outlier and still be alive and well ten years from now. Only about 13% of people currently with stage IV breast cancer will be alive ten years from now, and I have to do anything, by any means necessary, to be one of them for the sake of my children. I don’t want to leave them without a mother and be murdered by this disease. At present, there is no cure for metastatic breast cancer and 100% of the people with it will ultimately die as a result. It is the goal of my doctors to treat it chronically for many years to come, but that comes at a huge cost. PET scans, biopsies, medicines, lab work, transportation to and from the hospital, lost wages in opportunity cost, it all adds up. I was not expecting to ever be in this situation, at age 36. I was a teacher, I had a family. I was healthy. I ate right, exercised. Had a beautiful home I lovingly renovated. I never thought my life would be like this. Luckily I have been blessed with the love and support of many, but that isn’t enough. During this time of change and transition, more help is needed if at all possible. I would love nothing more than to get my disease stable and under control and our little family settled into our new chapter, filled with wonderful memories and adventures together. That can never happen with the heavy hand of financial toxicity always overhead. All we want is a simple, happy, healthy life. That’s all. If my circumstances ever allow, I would love to go back to teaching one day. I would love to give back. But now, I need to focus on myself, and my family and getting well. Any help in achieving that is greatly appreciated.


Updates will be posted regularly, but if you would like to keep up with Danielle in her own words, you can follow her blog: Wigs and Things .