Help Amber in her Battle with Breast Cancer

In July 2021, Amber found a lump in her breast. With a long history of family breast cancer, she decided to go in and get it tested. At that time, she was told it was a cyst and she wouldn’t need any other imaging. A few months later she went in again to get her cyst drained and was told in fact it was not a cyst. At 31 years old, Amber was diagnosed with triple negative invasive ductal carcinoma, a rare form of breast cancer (accounting for about 10-15% of all breast cancer cases).

Amber’s tumor is considered a high-grade (Grade 3) tumor. This means that the cancer cells will grow and spread faster than typical. Because of this, she will undergo chemotherapy for up to six months. Once her chemo regimen is completed, the tumor will be surgically removed, after which she will undergo a double mastectomy which will be followed by radiation treatments.

Needless to say, Amber’s life changed in the blink of an eye. She and Josh went from planning to their next baby to planning Amber’s moves battling breast cancer. Amber wants nothing more than to grow her family with Josh and 16-month-old Blakely. One of the side effects of chemotherapy that Amber will undergo is that it can stop her ovaries from working. The result is infertility, which can be either temporary or permanent. As a result, in addition to battling breast cancer, Amber will be undergoing egg harvesting and ultimately in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments in the hope of growing her family.

As you might imagine, the cost of these treatments can be overwhelmingly large. The exact price of egg freezing varies, but the price range for the procedure alone is usually between $5,000 and $10,000 per cycle. Other cost considerations include medication, storage fees, and in vitro fertilization (IVF) and the ability to test the embryo for the BRAC2+ gene (the cancer gene that Amber carries). This can increase costs to an additional $10,000-$15,000. Unfortunately, insurance does not cover many (often ANY) of these "pay up front" expenses.

To help Amber with her upcoming medical expense we have created a GoFundMe fundraiser. If you would like to donate to help her treat this life altering diagnosis, you can do so here. Otherwise, your thoughts and prayers are welcome ❤