Help Maia Fight Ewing Sarcoma Cancer

Maia West, a 15-year-old competitive surfer from Maui, Hawaii, needs your support as she begins her fight against Ewing Sarcoma Cancer. This began unexpectedly when she started experiencing back pain, initially dismissed as a surfing-related muscle injury. Saturday, 4/27/24 was the last time she surfed with her friends. Throughout the week, her pain escalated, and she was waking up at night with shooting back pain.

On Thursday 5/2/24, her pain worsened, leading to shortness of breath. Her mom brought her to Urgent Care, and the X-Ray showed something unusual on her right lung. Maia was immediately flown to Oahu for a biopsy and further testing which resulted in the devastating diagnosis of Ewing Sarcoma Cancer in her right 6th rib and a 6 cm mass on her right pleura, which was confirmed by the Mayo Clinic on 5/10/24.

Ewing Sarcoma is a rare and aggressive cancer, especially affecting children and teenagers. Maia's treatment requires urgent relocation to Cleveland, Ohio, for specialized care under Dr. Peter Anderson at the Cleveland Clinic. The relocation is essential for Maia and her family, including her parents Kim and Mike, 12-year-old brother Niko, and their beloved dog Duke.

Maia will be starting chemotherapy on Oahu 5/21/24 for 6 weeks, then they are going to relocate to Cleveland for the major surgeries and the continued chemo and radiation treatments. Please help Maia secure specialized care for this rare cancer.

Maia is an amazing and athletic teenager, with dreams of becoming an elementary school teacher and continuing her passion for surfing competitively. With your kindness and compassion, we can help her pursue those dreams and overcome this devastating form of rare cancer.

We are asking and praying for your generous support to help cover the significant costs associated with Maia's relocation and treatment. These funds will allow Maia’s family to be by her side without the additional worry of this financial burden. Your donation, no matter the size, will make a profound difference in supporting Maia's fight against cancer and easing the burden on her family.

Whether or not you are able to contribute financially, please consider sharing Maia's story within your community. Together, we can surround Maia with the love and support she needs during this difficult time. You can follow Maia's updates on Instagram at maiawest.littleripper Link

These are the expenses that we anticipate, as of now. We will make sure to update them with any changes that may occur:

Round Trip flights to Cleveland for the whole family: $1,100 a person x 4 = $ 4,400

Housing in Cleveland: $2,100 a month x 6 months = $ 12,600

Duke's relocation cost, we can’t leave him behind: Vet bills & flight expenses = $ 1,000

Medical expenses and co-pays - to be determined = $ 0

Thank you for your generosity, kindness, and compassion.