<div>I should be happy — but I’m at my wits’ end.
</div>
<div>Update: September 30th, 2025
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>I’ve made it through 80% of my chemo. That should feel like a victory, and in some ways it does — but today I got hit with the next phase of treatment, and the weight of it is hard to process.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>I’ve just been told I’ll be starting radiation therapy — specifically Pluvicto, paired with imaging. It’s a 36-week process that includes:
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>- 6 PET scans (positron emission tomography)
</div>
<div>- 6 intravenous radiation treatments (Pluvicto)
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Here’s the financial punch:
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>- PET scan copay: $300 each
</div>
<div>- Pluvicto treatment copay: $377 each
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>That’s over $4,000 out-of-pocket — and that’s only for this phase.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>And it’s on top of everything else:
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>- Zometa
</div>
<div>- Prednisone
</div>
<div>- Eligard injections
</div>
<div>- Port flushes
</div>
<div>- Entire days away from work
</div>
<div>- Fuel costs just to get to treatment
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>I’m doing everything I’m supposed to do — I’ve paid every bill, I’m still fighting every insurance denial, and I keep working as much as I can — but this latest turn has stretched me to the edge.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>I’m still fighting — medically, emotionally, and financially — but I’m exhausted. I’m sharing this because so many of you have helped keep me going, and I want you to know exactly where things stand.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Your support, prayers, and messages mean more than you know. They’ve kept me moving when I didn’t think I could. Thank you for standing with me through this fight.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Because of the extended treatment and growing costs, we’ve increased the fundraiser goal from $4,500 to $8,500. Every bit helps us keep going. Every share, every dollar, and every kind word makes a difference—for me and for my family.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>With gratitude,
</div>
<div>Mark (Salty)
</div>
<div>-----------------------------------------------
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Fighting Cancer Without Going Broke
</div>
<div><em>I planned for this. I thought I had it covered. What I didn’t see coming were the surprise charges no one talks about.</em>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>My name is Mark. I’m currently undergoing chemotherapy and hormone therapy for advanced metastatic prostate cancer. It’s in my lymph nodes and bones. From the moment I got my diagnosis, I prepared—mentally, nutritionally, and financially.
</div>
<div>--------------------------------
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We’ve managed to secure coverage for many of the big-ticket items — $2,500/month for Zytiga, $1,200/month for Eligard, $800 per infusion cycle for Taxotere. A new drug, Zometa, has been added recently for bone metastasis. We're still waiting to find out the actual monthly cost, but expected expenses are in the $1,200–$1,800 range. Another financial bridge we cross when we know for certain.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>What we didn’t see coming were the “<strong>administrative fees</strong>.”
</div>
<div>We walked into the first infusion expecting a $120 doctor visit copay—and got blindsided with nearly $300 in added charges. Just for walking through the door. The Chemo infusions alone are <strong>every 3 weeks</strong>.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>And that’s not all:
</div>
<div>•	Port flushes billed as “separate procedures”
</div>
<div>•	Zometa infusions will require office visit out of pocket at $120 every 4 weeks.
</div>
<div>•	Eligard injections require office visit out of pocket at $120 every 30 days.
</div>
<div>•	Labs and surprise diagnostics
</div>
<div>•	Specialized nutrition, supplement and hydration supplies
</div>
<div>•	Costs that are denied or just quietly not covered
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>These hidden fees are soul-crushing.
</div>
<div>They hit you when you're most vulnerable—and they add up fast.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>I’m not looking for charity. I’ve saved and prepared for most of this.
</div>
<div>I just need a small cushion to stay focused on healing instead of spiraling from <strong>unexpected costs</strong>.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>I'm asking for $4,500 to fill those gaps:
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>•	Administrative and infusion fees
</div>
<div>•	Injection visits and port maintenance
</div>
<div>•	Nutritional support during chemo
</div>
<div>•	Unexpected charges that land outside insurance reach
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>If you know me, you know I’ve approached this fight with clarity, honesty, and dark humor. I’ve done everything I can to handle it with grace.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>If you can help—thank you from the bottom of my heart. If you can’t, please consider sharing this with someone who might.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Every little bit helps. It all adds up and could make a HUGE difference right now.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>With gratitude,
</div>
<div>—Mark (Salty)
</div>

Gail Shepard-Cook

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Fighting Cancer, Not the System

platform

Platform is iOS

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Payment Identity Transfers ATO Risk Check (Targeted) - Production

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AUD Donation Upsell audience

fundraiserCountryCode is US/EN

Active Fundraiser - Smart Default Cadence

DAF Internal

Vault on success card payment method

Platform is iOS v11.0.0 and above

Desktop users

Person ids

United States (US) users

allow yuno fundraisers for test

Mexico country code

Posters INTL

NPO Profile Opted-In

iOS at or above 12.4.0

non-US recurring donors

Canada Campaign Owner Group

Fundraiser Without Meta Link

Scheduler payment tester gorup

charityCommunityId

Charities allow to be claimed unclaimed (PRD)

Canada (CA) users

UC Tipping v20250115 International

pymk_production_xplr_fe_team

Android at or above 12.2.0

Profile photo entry point audience

smart goals (fundraiser/manage) on test01

Activity Tracking v1 Beta Testing

start gfm intl allowed locales

Platform is iOS v11.2.0 and above

NPO upsell education category

unclaimed charities

prod_ach_audience

AI Chatbot Audience

amp13 only new funds (prod) (anyword auto)

UC Flow Enabled (Prod)

Payment Identity Beneficiary Verification - Production

shared notification bell audience

Custom users

ach frontend audience

Android v11.0.0 and above

Users Receiving Payments Paused Notifications

smart goals test01

Manage Coach - US English Organizers Only + new funds only

Team EGG - IP Address list

NPO recommendations prod

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Users Receiving Braze KYC Validation Failed

ai_title_page

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openai

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GB Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks V3 Rollout Audience

Thank you V3 testing whitelist

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NPO upsell animals category

NPO upsell disaster relief category

Logged In Users

CH Donation Upsell audience

Android v10.6.0 and above

NPO upsell essential needs category

NPO upsell medical category

userCurrencyCode

Localized Currency

NPO upsell cancer category

v11.5.0 and above

testAudience

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Survicate

appVersion is at or above 12.8.0

Non-charity fund

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challenge-fundraisers

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CAD Donation Upsell Audience

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NPO Profile Opted-Out

iOS App Version

hasKnownDonors

PYMK has donors

iOS v12.3.0 and above

Fighting Cancer, Not the System

Still $4,656 to go. Help us build momentum.