Hi, many who see this may know who I am, my name is John Durchak. I spend my younger years as a Fire Fighter and EMT in Eatontown, NJ and with Medcore working as an EMT for Six Flags, and as an Assistant Medical Administrator for Lord n Taylor in NYC.. I became sick in 2009 while working my dream job in IT for a company called Xpedite, Ptek, Premier Technologies, yeah, they changed their name a lot, now it is called Open Text , I was a Systems Admin and Systems Engineer, however, I got sick before that last name change so I didn't get to work with them under Open Text, however, I wored with some of the best people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting and working with and made some of my best friends there! However, after getting ill, I had to go out on Social Security Disability.

I was running my own Small Business for a while before COVID, but when COVID hit, I saw a number of my clients get into a position where they could have lost their companies, so I decided to turn my small Ecommerce company into a New Small Business Owner Consulting Firm where I was helping new Business Owers (some not so new) reorganize their business, creating a much more efficient operating environment, increasing the profitability and helping them build a web presence while introducing their websites to the power of Search Engine Optimization, and that is what I have done to this day. While still sick and on Disability, I was not able to put as much time into it as I would have liked, but the rewards and friendships made while helping people create their dream business have been one of the most rewarding experiences possible, and then it all came crumbling down 4 weeks ago.

I talked with m,y Pain Management Doctor because I was having some serious pain in my hip and he gave me a script for an MRI, however, the next couple of days the pain seemed to have gone away so I didn't want to waste the money to get the MRI, so I tabled it. Unfortunately, the pain came back with a vengeance a month later and he insisted that I get the MRI he had ordered.

It was at my next appointment that I heard the words that no one ever wants to hear and it was the most terrifying words anyone has ever said to me, "I want you to see an Oncologist / Hematologist" I did not fully understand what he was saying, I mean I am 48, why do I need to see an Oncologist for a pain in my hip? That was when he gave me the results of my MRI, he said that there was a 9cm x 3 cm mass on my pelvis, and likely not there for too long hence the aggressiveness of this. Well, I did not want to waste any time so I made an appointment for the very next day with an Oncologist. She already had my MRI and she already had a very good idea what it was as apparently this type of cancer has a very distinguishable radiographic image in the tumor it creates, and she also verified the results with a blood test.

My Oncologist was able to diagnose me with Plasmacytoma (which is a tumor of plasma cells on my pelvis) which they believe is an early stage of Multiple Myeloma however, after the blood test she was surprised that I actually had Multiple Myeloma hence why she said that I am in stage 2 and this cancer unlike most other cancers only has 3 stages so I am in an advanced stage. It is a rare cancer of the plasma cells in the bone marrow in which plasma cells become cancerous and multiply. The disease can damage the bones, immune system, kidneys, and red blood cell count. This is a rare cancer with only around 200,000 diagnoses per year. They don't know what causes it other than a random mutation that occurs in one of the genes.

It's a painful cancer as the pain is deep in the bone, as it weakens the bone causing compression fractures and cracks in the bones. I will need to also see an Orthopedist to see if the bones need to be made structurally sound, but they can't do that until they can knock out the tumor which I am going through Radiation therapy to take care of.

It would seem that if it is caught and treated early with multipronged Chemotherapy treatments I may have up to a 5-year 80% survival. Sadly though, this form of cancer, while being highly aggressive, is rarely caught early. Though my Oncologist is hopeful that with the treatment she is putting me on, which will be for 6 months, and then I will likely need to have a Stem cell transplant. While no one can say how well I will actually do on any treatment, after all it is cancer, and cancers don't usually play very nicely, I told my Oncologist that I do not want to be given a prognosis as I don't want someone telling me when my time is up. I intend to live each day as if it were the first and last and fight until the very end. I don't want any false hopes or any disturbing time frames.

My medical treatments, Doctor visits, living expenses, travel, and medications are going to cost me over $6 thousand per month and that is mostly for the Chemotherapy. Unfortunately, I am on permanent Social Security Disability, and Medicare, which will only cover 80% of the standard care and for some reason they are not covering the Chemotherapy medications, which I am not sure why. That said, everything is going to be very costly as I will still have to try and function and pay the rest of my bills and living expenses just like everyone else, but when you throw such an expensive treatment into the mix, it is very hard to make your regular bills as you have to prioritize which bills will be paid first, and which to pay at all. I have reached out to many Charity Organizations such as the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society as well as the pharmaceutical company themselves, as they usually have a list of all the Charities and whether they are accepting new patients, and so far I am being told that everything is closed for new patients as all of them have shortages of donations so they aren't accepting any new patients and they don't put people on waiting lists, which is really sad. Since I have to be on the Chemotherapy medications for at least 6 months, I am hoping that the Charities will re-open soon as I can't risk my life by not getting the medications and just waiting until something changes. So I will be putting everything on Credit Card to the tune of $6000 - $9000 per month for both medications until something changes if it changes.

I know that there are a lot of wonderful people in this world and many who have expressed their willingness to help during this time and I can't begin to tell you how grateful I am for those offers, so I decided to set up this Go Fund Me as a way to make it easier for anyone willing to help and It would mean the world to me as I honestly don't know how I would manage without such generosity. I have also made a promise that any additional money donated that I can not use for my treatment or if I am able can get charity support for the medications leaving me with any money not used for its intended purpose, I will donate to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society for the wonderful work they do in these cancers in the hopes that I can bring so well-needed help to those less fortunate.

I was a bit unsure how to do this, or if it was right to do this myself, but unfortunately nothing will get done on its own and cancer waits for no one. Right now anything can change at any moment. Cancer can be very dynamic and doesn't play by anyone's rules but its own, therefore I have to be ready at a moment's notice to change if the cancer changes or metastasizes for any reason. I certainly do not want to be caught off guard, so I am doing my best to get everything in the works to give myself the best opportunity to always stay one step ahead of this, and never let it get me down no matter how difficult things may get.

So for the most difficult part, I am genuinely asking, if you are able to help me I would really and truly appreciate it. Whether it be financially, transportation, food, medical care, everyday items, expenses for bills, anything at all, even just a phone call of positive thoughts, anything at all that will help make this dark and dismal situation easier on me and my family so that I can stay laser-focused on my recovery, it would mean everything to me.

I will do my best to keep everyone who is interested updated on my progress. I am sure there will be good times and bad times, but the more that I can share, the more that you can learn about this devastating cancer. Until I was diagnosed, I did not know this was a cancer that one would have to worry about. I honestly had not heard of this before, and according to what I read, this cancer is not even considered a risk in my demographic. Even my Oncologist was caught off guard by my diagnosis if that tells you anything. This is just one of those rare things that no one could have foreseen. Also according to the Doctors, the reason that this cancer is often caught so late is because many of its symptoms are symptoms of numerous far less trivial ailments, that no one would look at with any further reason to dig further since they are easily treatable and cost far less to do so. In other words, I really can't allow myself to become too consumed with the why or the poor me's as there would have been nothing I could have done to prevent this therefore I have no regret. I just have to follow the Doctors' orders, follow their treatment plans and keep a positive outlook, and not be afraid to ask for help and or lean on others when things are getting too much for me to handle. I have been through a lot in my life, and through it all, I never gave up, and I refuse to give up now! After all, I just got 2 new kittens last year after Darwin passed away, and I fully intend to be here and watch them grow up and be 2 of the most adorable kittens with all the love I can give them.

To wind this down, for now, I'm in a position where I can not do this alone. I can sometimes be quite stubborn which often has dire consequences completely 180 from what I had intended because I was too embarrassed or shamed to ask for help. That will not be the case this time. I am taking the bull by the horn this time, and I am going to utilize every resource possible to give me the best chance of beating this, and with your help, I know that I can.

If by chance you can't donate yourself, but you would still like to help in some way, please be kind enough to forward this Go Fund Me Campaign to people in your circles, or to places if you feel more comfortable. I do not want anyone to feel obligated to donate, if you can't or you are not comfortable doing so, that is ok, just some positve words would be helpful enough. This is not for me to decide how or if you would like to get involved. I would be grateful if you would join me on this journey so that together, we can beat this. This will take everything I have to beat, but with your support, it is possible. Also please know that your generosity does not just help me, it will truly make a huge difference to my family as well. My family has had to endure quite a bit over the last couple of weeks and I am so grateful to have them in my life still as their tireless efforts of getting me to the Doctors, to my treatments, and for medications etc, just can not go unstated. Without that, I would not be doing as well as I am currently.

While I don't yet know fully how to use this Go Fund Me, I am considering starting a daily blog to keep everyone updated on how I am doing, so everyone can see how I am doing with their support. I want to show everyone that even when all your cards are down, it just takes something as simple as accepting support to make a huge difference in one's recovery.

I am not good at salutations, so let me just say again, thank you so much for joining me and for taking the time to be a part of my life during this very questionable and difficult time. There is definitely no way that I could be doing this without you, words just can not express my gratitude to everyone.

I appreciate you taking the time to read this, and again, for those who have already contributed in one way or another, thank you so very much from the bottom of my heart!

All my love to everyone for being involved, for listening to me, and for taking the time just to ask how I am doing. Sometimes it can be the smallest thing that can change the outcome of an event, and I pray this campaign, and our friendships will help change the tide of this cancer.

Thank you so very much, and all my love to you all!

John Durchak

PS.

If anyone has any thoughts or suggestions, by all means, please share them with me, and if it seems it may work I will do my best to implement them. Again, Thank you very much, I could not do any of this without you.

Love you all!

John