Hi, my name is Alyse Owen and I’m Emily Sinz’s oldest sister, her friend, and one of her biggest cheerleaders!

We have had a lot of people reach out since Emily opened up about her breast cancer diagnosis on how they can support her and her family during this time. If you know Emily, you know how stubborn she can be, especially when it comes to accepting help. She has supported me, her family, her friends, and so many people in this world on their own journeys, and it's time for us to rally together and support Emily!

For those who have not heard the news, Emily was diagnosed with "invasive ductal carcinoma" this past July, 3 short months after giving birth to her sweet baby girl. You can read her full story below.

Emily started her fight two weeks after her diagnosis. The first step in her journey is undergoing six aggressive rounds of chemotherapy. She has gone into this battle with the grace, strength, and the most optimistic attitude. We all know and love Emily for her tenacity, but these chemo rounds have been extremely rough on her body, both physically and mentally.

I'm asking you to join me in supporting Emily and her family in helping pay the large medical bills that have already started coming in and will continue through the end of next year. While we can't take away the stress and anxiety the cancer diagnosis has caused her, we can help ease the stress around the financial burden.

I know I speak for us all when I say Emily is the best kind of person. She is the most generous, kind, and caring individual and is always there when someone is in need. Now in return, we need to show her all of the love and support we can!

All contributions will go straight to Emily to support her and her family on this journey. This includes medical expenses, post-treatment care, additional childcare during treatment/radiation weeks when Emily can't take care of her daughter, and other every day expenses.

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Emily's story from her point of view:

I found a lump in my left breast while in the shower back in June. I was convinced it was a clogged duct from breast feeding and let it go thinking it would go away on its own. A few weeks later the lump was still there and my mom convinced me to get it checked out just to be safe. It took quite a while to get an appointment with my doctor to get an order form for a mammogram.

Fast forward to July, I went to my mammogram/ultrasound appointment alone convinced it was nothing to be worried about. I remember vividly while getting my mammogram, the nurse asked me if anyone came with me and it was in that moment I knew something was wrong. The doctor came in after the ultrasound and her and the nurse pulled up a chair, held my hand and told me there was a very good chance I had breast cancer. Time froze in that moment and my world crumbled around me. I was convinced at any moment I was going to wake up from a nightmare. I couldn't understand how I had just become a mom and this was happening to me, it wasn't how my postpartum journey was supposed to go.

I then had a biopsy and on July 25th it was confirmed that I had breast cancer. At my first oncologist appointment at the beginning of August, after an MRI, we were told it was Stage 2 "invasive ductal carcinoma", invasive meaning it had spread to my lymph nodes. The oncologist was adamant that we start aggressive chemotherapy treatments as soon as possible. On August 9th, a week after meeting with the oncologist, I started my first of 6 rounds of chemotherapy.

Fast forward to present day, I am finishing my last round of chemotherapy on November 22. These treatments have taken a toll on my body, each round taking me out for a week and a half where I am physically unable to care for our daughter, Savannah. I struggle with body weakness, severe nausea, vertigo, lack of appetite, and so much more. To say these treatments are the hardest thing I have ever endured would be an understatement.

I just had another MRI on November 8th and we received amazing news, my mass was completely gone and my lymph nodes were no longer inflamed...meaning there were no signs of cancer! The oncologist almost seemed as though she was in disbelief, saying it was remarkable and looked as though I had made what they call a full recovery. It was the best news on a day where I was feeling my worst.

While the first part of my journey is nearing the end, we still have such a battle ahead of us. After my final treatment, they are giving my body six weeks to rest before surgery. I am blessed to be able to get a lumpectomy versus a double mastectomy, where they will remove the tissue surrounding where my mass was. They will also do a biopsy on my lymph nodes to see if there are any cancer cells still present and then decide how many (if any) need to be removed. We're praying this surgery will come back with clear margins and no signs of cancer cells!

After the surgery, I will undergo 30 straight days of radiation. After that I will continue targeted therapy for the remainder of the year.

While my journey is far from over, I thank God daily for the work he has already done in my body. We are hopeful I will be cancer free at the end of this!!