Help Jess Ramirez Fight Stage 4 Medullary Cancer

Jessica Ramirez, Jess to her friends and family, was diagnosed with stage 3 medullary thyroid cancer on April 27th, 2022. This was devastating to all who know her, but especially to her husband Miguel and their four children: Aaron - 19, Jullian - 18, Miah - 15, and Miguel - 12.

Jess had her first surgery on May 25th, which was partially successful. While they were able to get a lot of the cancerous nodules out, unfortunately, they did end up having to leave some in. These remaining nodules proved to be life-threatening when on December 21st, PET scans confirmed that her cancer had metastasized. Following these scans, Jess traveled to the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor to determine a treatment plan. They planned to observe and see how it progressed.

Wanting to be more proactive, on February 27th, Jess took her first trip to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota to get a second opinion. At Mayo, Jess underwent multiple tests including an ultrasound, labs, a CT scan, and a biopsy so that their doctors could get a comprehensive understanding of her condition. Last week, Jess was able to meet with Mayo surgeons to begin treatment. On April 13th, they tried an ethanol ablation (radiation). Unfortunately, it was unsuccessful. Surgery is particularly tricky for Jess because the cancerous nodules are in the deep tissue in the vocal bed. This means that they have to cut the cord and that will require a tracheotomy to access the area. This will make it a multi-step approach with a trach first, then surgery. After the surgery, Jess will lose her voice for good and further complications and risks are possible.

This surgery will not be the last step in her battle with cancer and she will face more travel to Mayo and treatments in the road ahead. Travel to the Mayo Clinic from where Jess lives in Michigan is costly. Mayo is also out-of-network for her insurance provider and, as such, only a small percentage of her treatment expenses are being covered.

Please, if you can, consider donating to Jess’s treatment fund. Any amount, big or small, will be greatly appreciated. If you are not currently able to donate, please share this page.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and for your support.