My name is Shannon O'Brien and I am starting this GoFundMe for my friend, Ella Nunes, as she goes through treatment for stage 2 breast cancer.

Ella quite literally brings the light and warmth to so many people - not only because of who she is as a person but also as the owner of her small business, Wax + Fire candles. Her diagnosis and treatment brings a layered burden financially due to the high out of pocket cost of Perjeta, the recommended drug she needs in conjunction with chemo and radiation, but also as the maker of her hand-poured candles, which is hard on the body and nearly impossible to keep up on her own while going through chemotherapy.

A routine mammogram showed a suspicious lump which ended up being a HER2 positive and considered Stage 2. Ella thought she was going to see a surgeon to have the lump removed but was shocked to find out se had to get 4-6 treatments of chemotherapy to shrink it before they would attempt to remove it.

The recommended drug for the treatment is Perjeta, not yet recognized in Canada but is used specifically with trastuzumab and chemotherapy to treat early-stage (before/after surgery) and metastatic breast cancer.

Using Perjeta in this treatment will allow the best outcome to clean up the HER2 cells with a far better chance of them not recurring later in life.

The total cost of this medication for the doses required is $31,500. Ella has been approved for a subsidy which covers 60% of the cost and will therefore be paying $12,600 out of pocket for this drug. It was a very difficult decision but she wants the very best outcome from this treatment so she can be well and live a long healthy life with her family. Being self employed and navigating illness is incredibly difficult and any amount we raise to help pay for this is an incredible help.

I am hopeful that our collective community can help Ella focus on her treatment and recovery while spending time with her husband, Lawrence, and teenage son, Liam.

Please consider donating to this GoFundMe to support Ella through this difficult time. You can also support her by buying a Wax + Fire candle (which are honestly the best candles in Canada!). Thank you for taking the time to read, share and support Ella. Your kindness means the world!