- C
- K
I can remember exactly where I was when I got the text from my siblings...
"Mom has cancer"
I was on a date in the middle of a movie. Instant panic pierced my heart and a lump grew in my throat.
When I left the theater to call her, my dad answered the phone. Where is mom?
Do you want to know where she was? She was giving a presentation to a boy scouts troop right after being diagnosed. Even after the delivery of the worst news, she was still in the service of her community. Peace instantly filled my heart. If you know her, you know it has been her life's mission to minister to others. A lifetime given especially to those who are deaf and blind.
Since December 2017 Leslie has been in and out of doctors offices and hospitals. Enduring pokes, and prods trying to find the source of an excruciating pain in her side following a gallbladder surgery. After urging doctors to investigate, they discovered cancer in her colon, liver, lymph nodes, and ovary in May. Doctors have operated to remove and test the cancers and we thought we were in the clear, we would move forward with chemo and routine check-ups to prevent further growth. Unfortunately, the pain persisted. Scan after Scan, rapid weight loss, not holding food down, visits to the U of U and Hunstman for pain management, and fluids. She finally received the referral to an oncologist.
And we wait...
Its difficult to hear your Mom very clearly in pain over the phone, the toughest person I know is in bad shape, and we don't know why?!
Hopefully we will receive insight and a clear plan for what is going on, but she called us tonight with the results. Her cancer has spread.
The cancer has been rapidly growing over the past six weeks. It has spread in the liver, colon, lymph nodes, and an artery that is crucial for liver function, with a chance of infecting other organs. Without treatment her sentence is predicted to be six months!
Leslie has served her community for 50+ years providing materials and technology assistance to the deaf and blind, ministering to members of her church, spending countless hours on capital hill, representing the disabled, caring for us 5 kids, 13 grandchildren, and the list goes on...
HELP US GIVE BACK!
So here's the plan:
After a PET scan to see where the cancer has spread, they will begin chemo and monitor how her cancer reacts. We aren't sure how long this journey will be, but we know that the financial burden will be plentiful!
We are so grateful for any donation, prayers, or acts of kindness to lift spirits during this trying time. We'd like to thank those who have respected her privacy up to this point, along with those who have been so charitable while we ride this roller coaster. Our family has felt an outpouring of support that will never be forgotten! Please, don't forget to share our efforts.
-Gertsch Fam
"Mom has cancer"
I was on a date in the middle of a movie. Instant panic pierced my heart and a lump grew in my throat.
When I left the theater to call her, my dad answered the phone. Where is mom?
Do you want to know where she was? She was giving a presentation to a boy scouts troop right after being diagnosed. Even after the delivery of the worst news, she was still in the service of her community. Peace instantly filled my heart. If you know her, you know it has been her life's mission to minister to others. A lifetime given especially to those who are deaf and blind.
Since December 2017 Leslie has been in and out of doctors offices and hospitals. Enduring pokes, and prods trying to find the source of an excruciating pain in her side following a gallbladder surgery. After urging doctors to investigate, they discovered cancer in her colon, liver, lymph nodes, and ovary in May. Doctors have operated to remove and test the cancers and we thought we were in the clear, we would move forward with chemo and routine check-ups to prevent further growth. Unfortunately, the pain persisted. Scan after Scan, rapid weight loss, not holding food down, visits to the U of U and Hunstman for pain management, and fluids. She finally received the referral to an oncologist.
And we wait...
Its difficult to hear your Mom very clearly in pain over the phone, the toughest person I know is in bad shape, and we don't know why?!
Hopefully we will receive insight and a clear plan for what is going on, but she called us tonight with the results. Her cancer has spread.
The cancer has been rapidly growing over the past six weeks. It has spread in the liver, colon, lymph nodes, and an artery that is crucial for liver function, with a chance of infecting other organs. Without treatment her sentence is predicted to be six months!
Leslie has served her community for 50+ years providing materials and technology assistance to the deaf and blind, ministering to members of her church, spending countless hours on capital hill, representing the disabled, caring for us 5 kids, 13 grandchildren, and the list goes on...
HELP US GIVE BACK!
So here's the plan:
After a PET scan to see where the cancer has spread, they will begin chemo and monitor how her cancer reacts. We aren't sure how long this journey will be, but we know that the financial burden will be plentiful!
We are so grateful for any donation, prayers, or acts of kindness to lift spirits during this trying time. We'd like to thank those who have respected her privacy up to this point, along with those who have been so charitable while we ride this roller coaster. Our family has felt an outpouring of support that will never be forgotten! Please, don't forget to share our efforts.
-Gertsch Fam