Help Alex with expenses during cancer treatment
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About 1 in 8 U.S. woman will develop invasive breast cancer in her lifetime; turns out that I am one of those women. 2020 sure was a hard year for so many of us. I personally saw a lot of loss and difficult change in my own life but the news I received on December 31st took the cake. The radiologist called me after deciding to biopsy a suspicious lump in my left breast (I had found the lump myself about a month earlier and had gotten a physical exam and then a mammogram and an ultrasound). The news was tough to hear, “stage 2 invasive ductal carcinoma”. I was shocked, I have breast cancer at 33. Just two months earlier I had been to the doctor, gotten a full lab workup, and was told that I should be celebrating because of how healthy I was. Life tends to be ironic, at least for me, not sure about everyone else.
Moving on to the less terrible stuff, I am feeling pretty good. I mean, relatively speaking; I just know I can do this. I have a lot of fantastic people in my life that have offered so much support and the doctors and nurses at the Northern Arizona Cancer Center that I have met thus far have been amazing. I was previously uninsured and was sent to the ladies that work with this truly special program called Well Woman Health Check. I had to hold back tears of gratitude as these lovely ladies have walked me through every step to getting the financial support I need to cover the cost of cancer treatment. It is funny to feel so lucky when I’ve just been diagnosed with cancer but I really do.
It turns out there are some substantial expenses to having cancer, even when you have these amazing programs covering the cost of treatment. The nurses told me about this new technology called cold capping that will allow me to keep most of my hair during the process of chemo. Many of the stories I have read and many of the woman I have talked to about going through breast cancer treatment have said that losing their hair was the most difficult part. All of this has been difficult enough but knowing that I could possibly keep my locks and in turn save myself months of stares and sorry looks in my direction as well as avoid the potential for questions and unwelcomed comments, is a light already starting to show at the end of an exceptionally long and dark tunnel.
This treatment along with several different supplements that have been recommended to me during this process are all incredibly expensive. I will also need to take off work for both my inevitable surgery and times during the chemotherapy treatment itself over the next 6 to 9 months. This is where you, the community, comes in. It is difficult for me to ask for help in this way, but I am learning quickly that difficult things are notably useful for growth and progression. I have always been an advocate for asking for help when it comes to friends and family, so it is now time to walk my talk. If you are in no position to help financially, believe me, I completely understand. Your positive, loving and healing thoughts would be greatly appreciated either way. I would appreciate anything you can do to help or any words of encouragement that you have. Thank you all for your support. I know this is still a difficult time for so many and my heart goes out to you all. We will get through this difficult time together!!
All my love,
Alexandra
PS: I plan to post a lot more about this process. Both to let friends and family know where I’m at and to add to the material available for other women going through the same thing. It has been a life saver to be able to access so many powerful stories of breast cancer survival. I want to be a part of making that information available to anyone who might go through this after me. Stay Tuned!
Moving on to the less terrible stuff, I am feeling pretty good. I mean, relatively speaking; I just know I can do this. I have a lot of fantastic people in my life that have offered so much support and the doctors and nurses at the Northern Arizona Cancer Center that I have met thus far have been amazing. I was previously uninsured and was sent to the ladies that work with this truly special program called Well Woman Health Check. I had to hold back tears of gratitude as these lovely ladies have walked me through every step to getting the financial support I need to cover the cost of cancer treatment. It is funny to feel so lucky when I’ve just been diagnosed with cancer but I really do.
It turns out there are some substantial expenses to having cancer, even when you have these amazing programs covering the cost of treatment. The nurses told me about this new technology called cold capping that will allow me to keep most of my hair during the process of chemo. Many of the stories I have read and many of the woman I have talked to about going through breast cancer treatment have said that losing their hair was the most difficult part. All of this has been difficult enough but knowing that I could possibly keep my locks and in turn save myself months of stares and sorry looks in my direction as well as avoid the potential for questions and unwelcomed comments, is a light already starting to show at the end of an exceptionally long and dark tunnel.
This treatment along with several different supplements that have been recommended to me during this process are all incredibly expensive. I will also need to take off work for both my inevitable surgery and times during the chemotherapy treatment itself over the next 6 to 9 months. This is where you, the community, comes in. It is difficult for me to ask for help in this way, but I am learning quickly that difficult things are notably useful for growth and progression. I have always been an advocate for asking for help when it comes to friends and family, so it is now time to walk my talk. If you are in no position to help financially, believe me, I completely understand. Your positive, loving and healing thoughts would be greatly appreciated either way. I would appreciate anything you can do to help or any words of encouragement that you have. Thank you all for your support. I know this is still a difficult time for so many and my heart goes out to you all. We will get through this difficult time together!!
All my love,
Alexandra
PS: I plan to post a lot more about this process. Both to let friends and family know where I’m at and to add to the material available for other women going through the same thing. It has been a life saver to be able to access so many powerful stories of breast cancer survival. I want to be a part of making that information available to anyone who might go through this after me. Stay Tuned!
Organiser
Alexandra Kulig
Organiser
Flagstaff, AZ