Hi, my name is Karen and in February 2023 I was diagnosed with Uveal melanoma, a rare and deadly eye cancer. In April of 2023 I had my eye removed and was told by the oncologist at Boston Mass that since uveal melanoma is such a rare cancer, it doesn’t receive the same funding as the more common cancers. Therefore treatment options are limited. He also stated that I had an 80 percent chance that it would spread to my liver and his best advice was to do everything i could to stay alive because there will be new treatments in the future. Unfortunately a year later the cancer spread to my liver. I was given a new FDA approved treatment to treat my liver but had to stop due to low blood counts.

At one point, I was promised access to a groundbreaking clinical trial exploring mRNA therapy. Messenger RNA (mRNA) technology is unlike anything we’ve seen before in cancer treatment. It uses genetic instructions to activate the immune system to seek and destroy cancer cells. It’s precise, targeted, and has the potential to cure cancer.

I was so excited that my Dr. was leading the way for mRNA clinical trials for uveal melanoma. But suddenly, that hope was taken away. The mRNA research that held promise for a cure was defunded — cut by $500 million. The same technology that saved millions during the pandemic and has revolutionized medicine was abandoned for cancer research, leaving people like me without a lifeline.

This defunding means I must now face painful, toxic clinical trials that might only offer limited time, rather than the possibility of a true cure. This is why I’m reaching out today: not just for myself but for everyone battling uveal melanoma who deserves more than just hope — they deserve action.

Because uveal melanoma is so rare, research funding has always been scarce. Now, with crucial mRNA research programs slashed, that scarcity has turned into a crisis. My goal is to raise $20 million to restart this vital research, fund clinical trials, and bring back a chance for patients like me to fight smarter, not just harder.

Please help me turn this devastating cut into an opportunity for hope. Your support will fund the scientists who refuse to give up and fund the treatments patients desperately need. Together, we can push back against the cuts and prove that rare diseases deserve real cures.

Every dollar brings us closer to a future where no one has to endure painful treatments without better options, and where mRNA therapies can become the new standard not only for uveal melanoma care but for all cancers. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for standing with me and the thousands of others who need a second chance.