Help Sara Get Urgent Cancer Treatment

Hello. My name is Sara. When I was 2 years old, I was diagnosed with cancer. It was called rhabdomyosarcoma. I was case #3. It was under my left eye, in my sinuses. The doctors didn't know how to treat it, so they hit me with everything they had: chemo and what my mother believed even then was an excessive amount of radiation. I still have some unresolved trauma from my experience. I remember nightmares, painful procedures, and begging my mom not to let them hurt me. Two years later, they did a scan and the tumor had not changed. The following week, they did another scan, and it was gone. They had no clue what happened; they just knew it was gone. Ever since I was old enough to understand, I have given God full credit for that miracle.

The radiation caused significant damage to my left eye, my sinuses, my teeth, and my pituitary gland (the one that produces the growth hormone). I slowly went blind in my left eye, and it stopped producing tears. When I was 7, it was removed. Some of my adult teeth grew in abnormally, and they were later pulled and replaced with implants because they would have eventually fallen out on their own anyway.

Aside from the surgeries to try to correct the damage, I have lived a relatively normal life. I got a job and a car when I was 16 and have worked and paid my bills ever since.

In December of 2024, 37 years after going into final remission, I went to an oral surgeon for a consult about having implants put in on the bottom arch. The doctor examined me, and I mentioned a mass that I felt in the back of my mouth. He took one look and wanted to biopsy it. We scheduled the procedure and set an appointment for a week later to come back for the results. I sat in the room with my mother, trying to stay positive, but when the doctor walked in, I knew it wasn't good. I was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma inside my mouth on my soft palate. He said it was most likely caused by the radiation from my treatment before and told me to get care as soon as possible, but my only problem was that I had lost my job in July and didn't have health insurance anymore.

I tried to apply for Medicaid but was told I didn't qualify because I don't have kids. I couldn't go to the nearest county hospital and apply for their program because I don't live in that county. I tried everything I could think of but couldn't get any kind of assistance, and every doctor I spoke to wanted a minimum of $350 just for a consult and for every other visit after that.

I have since found a job, but insurance is not offered. I did sign up for a marketplace plan, but none of the doctors that I need to see will accept it. It is now September 1st as I am writing this story, and the mass that started out slightly larger than the size of a pea has now grown into my cheek and my tongue. I can't open my mouth very wide anymore, and it's painful to eat, yawn, and even move my tongue forward. When food gets between my cheek and my teeth, I'm not able to get it out with my tongue. There is a constant ache in the back of my mouth and tongue, and sometimes the pain radiates into my ear.

I'm creating this fundraiser because it is my last resort. I don't know what else to do. The goal I have set is simply to see a doctor and hopefully get some imaging done. I just don't know how much I'll need right now in order to get the care necessary. If you are able to help, I want to sincerely thank you. But even if you are not able to help monetarily, it would still mean the world to me if you could share this and hopefully reach more people who can.

Thank you so much for reading my story, and be blessed.