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Nick's Terminate the Tumor Facebook Group
Nick’s story:
I had a significant weight loss at the end of last year and I was having difficulty with food feeling stuck in my chest. I saw my doctor for a physical and my hemoglobin was alarmingly low. On December 17th, I had an endoscopy which found a softball sized tumor in my esophagus and part of my stomach. The biopsy confirmed our worst fears; I had esophageal cancer.
Since the tumor was so large and blocking my esophagus, I could not safely eat anything solid and was placed on a liquid diet and I continued to lose weight. On December 23rd, I met with an oncologist/thoracic surgeon. He reviewed my scans and gave me the first good news since my diagnosis, No metastasis! However, he told me that the road ahead would be difficult as I would need a feeding tube, 6 weeks of chemotherapy and radiation, and then an extensive surgery where they will remove my esophagus and about half of my stomach and then rebuild an esophagus with the remaining portion of my stomach.
On December 27th, I had a 4 hour surgery for feeding tube placement and port placement in preparation for chemo. I am on the feeding pump 16 hours a day (from 6pm to 10am). I started chemotherapy and radiation on January 20th. My treatment seems to be going well so far.
The most difficult part for me is that I have been completely unable to work in the job I love since my diagnosis and I will not be able to return for months. Worse is that I do not have any short term disability income and the medical bills, as well as all the regular bills, are piling up.
Your support means a lot to me, because I want to keep living my life without being financially devastated. I want to have a life with my lovely partner Gretchen once this is all over. If you aren’t able to contribute financially, your thoughts, vibes, prayers...whatever you have to give are felt and very appreciated! Thank you for being part of my team. I have felt so supported throughout this process and am grateful for whatever you can give.
Nick’s story:
I had a significant weight loss at the end of last year and I was having difficulty with food feeling stuck in my chest. I saw my doctor for a physical and my hemoglobin was alarmingly low. On December 17th, I had an endoscopy which found a softball sized tumor in my esophagus and part of my stomach. The biopsy confirmed our worst fears; I had esophageal cancer.
Since the tumor was so large and blocking my esophagus, I could not safely eat anything solid and was placed on a liquid diet and I continued to lose weight. On December 23rd, I met with an oncologist/thoracic surgeon. He reviewed my scans and gave me the first good news since my diagnosis, No metastasis! However, he told me that the road ahead would be difficult as I would need a feeding tube, 6 weeks of chemotherapy and radiation, and then an extensive surgery where they will remove my esophagus and about half of my stomach and then rebuild an esophagus with the remaining portion of my stomach.
On December 27th, I had a 4 hour surgery for feeding tube placement and port placement in preparation for chemo. I am on the feeding pump 16 hours a day (from 6pm to 10am). I started chemotherapy and radiation on January 20th. My treatment seems to be going well so far.
The most difficult part for me is that I have been completely unable to work in the job I love since my diagnosis and I will not be able to return for months. Worse is that I do not have any short term disability income and the medical bills, as well as all the regular bills, are piling up.
Your support means a lot to me, because I want to keep living my life without being financially devastated. I want to have a life with my lovely partner Gretchen once this is all over. If you aren’t able to contribute financially, your thoughts, vibes, prayers...whatever you have to give are felt and very appreciated! Thank you for being part of my team. I have felt so supported throughout this process and am grateful for whatever you can give.