
Help Makayla with unexpected surgery
Donation protected
My name is Lisa. Makayla is my beautiful, intelligent and kind-hearted 25-year-old daughter who is going through some extremely challenging medical problems. She has Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), which is a rare genetic condition that causes polyps to form and, if left untreated, will turn into cancer. Although we expected to have another 10-15 years before drastic measures need to be taken, we just found out she needs a total colectomy (all of her colon and part of her intestines removed) to avoid the certainty it will progress to cancer, in the next month. I know the last 2 years have been challenging for everyone and we don’t want anyone to feel obligated to help. However, she could really use a village right now to get her through this time (emotionally, financially and with positive vibes). Makayla is a part-time 1-on-1 tutor for children with autism and a college student. Like most of us, she has been living paycheck to paycheck and scraping by. This turn of events will require her to miss a significant amount of work (up to 6 months), incur medical expenses and navigate physical/emotional landmines that no 25-year-old should have to. If you can contribute, we would be immensely grateful! The following paragraph will give more details/history of her condition for those who are interested.
The FAP was inherited from her father, who she doesn’t have contact with. Luckily, she had contact with him briefly when she was 16 and he informed us of the genetic condition in his family. Once the genetic testing showed that she did indeed have FAP, she started with colonoscopy screenings and we collected as much information about the family history as we could. The first screening was clear. The second colonoscopy/endoscopy showed 6 polyps, which they removed. In February, she had developed 16 polyps and her Gastroenterologist felt like she needed care from a team that specializes in FAP and sent her to UCSF. After a battle with the insurance company, she finally got her colonoscopy with UCSF on August 23, 2021. It had only been 6 months since her last colonoscopy (which showed 16 polyps) and the news was devastating. She now has over 60 polyps and needs to have a total colectomy. We knew that this would happen eventually because of the FAP, as there is a 100% chance (by the time she is in her 40’s) of it progressing to cancer if untreated. However, we expected it to happen in her late 30’s or early 40’s, not at 25. They have scheduled further testing to make sure she doesn’t need other organs (possibly stomach and/or pancreas) removed and the total colectomy for October 7th. All of this means many more trips to San Francisco, medical supplies and other (harder to predict) expenses such as home health nurse etc. Thank you in advance to anyone who is able to contribute!
Co-organizers (3)
Lisa Cochran-Navarra
Organizer
Citrus Heights, CA
Makayla Cochran
Beneficiary
Jocelyn Cruz
Co-organizer