Help Hailey help Andrew beat Cancer...Again
Donation protected
Hailey and Andrew met on Instragram in June of 2018 and though they live on different continents, they have been dating for just about two years. Before they met in person they spent all of their free time on Facetime and Andrew (on the iPad) quickly became a fixture in our home. During that time Andrew told us about his battle with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). In July 2017, being a young fit 15 year old and playing outside with friends regularly, he started encountering differences in his day-to-day life and was developing symptoms like shortness of breath, bruising easily and pale skin. His mother got him into the doctor right away and his life took a drastic turn when he heard one of the worst things anyone dreads to hear, "you have cancer". After 8 months of intense treatment he was put on maintenance.
In July of 2019, Hailey, my mother, and I were so excited to be heading to the UK to meet Andrew in person, a gift her father and I had given her for Christmas. A few months later and Hailey was on her way back there for Christmas vacation, solo this time. At this point Andrew had become part of our family. We were excited that he would be heading here in July of 2020 to spend the month. We were worried that COVID would interfere with his trip here, but it turns out that was the least of our worries. Just a couple short weeks before he was to come here he found out his cancer was back. This meant another long cycle of treatment, which included more rounds of chemo and a new transplant therapy called CAR-T. Hailey was finally able to get to him in England after many canceled flights and even more tears. She spent 5 weeks with Andrew while he started treatment. Once home it was clear that she needed to be with him during this difficult time. After two short weeks home, she returned to England where she has been since the end of August. In September Andrew was admitted to London cancer specialist hospital for almost two months while getting CAR-T treatment. It was as awful as he expected but after hearing his bone marrow tests were clear he was so hopeful he was finally in the clear and ready to actually start living his life.
Hailey was finally scheduled to come home on January 18th. We were so excited for her return and she was feeling good about it as well. It appeared that the CAR-T treatment had been successful and that Andrew was once again cancer free. Unfortunately, this joy was short-lived. On January 3rd, after routine bloodwork and a lumbar puncture, Andrew was given the dreaded news that the CAR-T treatment had not been successful. He was once again going to need treatment. With that news, Hailey knew that she couldn't leave Andrew, and Andrew knew he would need her with him to get through another round with cancer. This round may be the toughest of all and includes a new immunotherapy, radiotherapy, and a bone marrow transplant.
This brings us to our fundraiser. Hailey, as an American is only allowed to be in England until the end of February. Upon consulting with an attorney, they were told that Hailey could apply for an extension and because of COVID would not be required to the US while it was processed. The costs are high for the extension application and they will need the attorney to help them with the process. They are currently in the hospital while Andrew receives a week of observed chemotherapy 24 hours a day. They will then go home where Andrew will continue to get chemo 24/7 for another 3 weeks. Once that is done he will get a two week reprieve before his bone marrow transplant. The transplant will keep Andrew, with Hailey by his side, in the hospital for 6 weeks.
Because Hailey cannot work as a visitor in the UK she has relied on her savings, birthday and Christmas money, and whatever help we can give her to pay for what she needs and contribute to food while she's been there for the past five months. We are expecting Andrew's treatment to last around another 3 months. We are asking for donations to help pay for Hailey's Visa, attorney fees, food and incidentals for both of them, and travel. Any and all donations are greatly appreciated.
Please help Hailey and Andrew through this difficult time and please keep him in your prayers.
In July of 2019, Hailey, my mother, and I were so excited to be heading to the UK to meet Andrew in person, a gift her father and I had given her for Christmas. A few months later and Hailey was on her way back there for Christmas vacation, solo this time. At this point Andrew had become part of our family. We were excited that he would be heading here in July of 2020 to spend the month. We were worried that COVID would interfere with his trip here, but it turns out that was the least of our worries. Just a couple short weeks before he was to come here he found out his cancer was back. This meant another long cycle of treatment, which included more rounds of chemo and a new transplant therapy called CAR-T. Hailey was finally able to get to him in England after many canceled flights and even more tears. She spent 5 weeks with Andrew while he started treatment. Once home it was clear that she needed to be with him during this difficult time. After two short weeks home, she returned to England where she has been since the end of August. In September Andrew was admitted to London cancer specialist hospital for almost two months while getting CAR-T treatment. It was as awful as he expected but after hearing his bone marrow tests were clear he was so hopeful he was finally in the clear and ready to actually start living his life.
Hailey was finally scheduled to come home on January 18th. We were so excited for her return and she was feeling good about it as well. It appeared that the CAR-T treatment had been successful and that Andrew was once again cancer free. Unfortunately, this joy was short-lived. On January 3rd, after routine bloodwork and a lumbar puncture, Andrew was given the dreaded news that the CAR-T treatment had not been successful. He was once again going to need treatment. With that news, Hailey knew that she couldn't leave Andrew, and Andrew knew he would need her with him to get through another round with cancer. This round may be the toughest of all and includes a new immunotherapy, radiotherapy, and a bone marrow transplant.
This brings us to our fundraiser. Hailey, as an American is only allowed to be in England until the end of February. Upon consulting with an attorney, they were told that Hailey could apply for an extension and because of COVID would not be required to the US while it was processed. The costs are high for the extension application and they will need the attorney to help them with the process. They are currently in the hospital while Andrew receives a week of observed chemotherapy 24 hours a day. They will then go home where Andrew will continue to get chemo 24/7 for another 3 weeks. Once that is done he will get a two week reprieve before his bone marrow transplant. The transplant will keep Andrew, with Hailey by his side, in the hospital for 6 weeks.
Because Hailey cannot work as a visitor in the UK she has relied on her savings, birthday and Christmas money, and whatever help we can give her to pay for what she needs and contribute to food while she's been there for the past five months. We are expecting Andrew's treatment to last around another 3 months. We are asking for donations to help pay for Hailey's Visa, attorney fees, food and incidentals for both of them, and travel. Any and all donations are greatly appreciated.
Please help Hailey and Andrew through this difficult time and please keep him in your prayers.
Co-organizers (3)
Kim Scott Lannigan
Organizer
Uxbridge, MA
Hailey Lannigan
Co-organizer
Andrew Duncan
Co-organizer