Help save my momma from Stage 4 Pancreatic cancer!

Hey everyone. I am Jessica and this is the story of my momma, Kim's, Pancreatic cancer along with a go fund me (after convincing her it is OK to do this after battling this horrible cancer for 2 years). She is not one to ever ask for help no matter the situation, but is the 1st one to help someone else, no matter the situation. I do not care to ask for help if it means keeping my momma longer and potentially beating this beast.

Alot of people do not know her story, as we don't talk about it on social media. It is a story of ups and downs. It is a story of bravery. It is a story of love. First I'm gonna tell you her story. Then I'm gonna tell you what I have learned in the thousands of hours of research I have done, as well as talking to others who have also been through this cancer and came out on the other end as a survivor. I also want to educate every single person on the fact that most all doctors will not tell you all of the treatment options regarding advanced cancer. With all of the "extra people who help" in the office, noone discussed insurance options including Medicare. I have done hours of research to understand Medicare and realize that the Man does not care if you have cancer and are disabled. There is no help out there unless you qualify for medicaid(make less than $1695/month regardless of your bills, dependents, or terminal diagnosis), are over 65, or can afford the Medigap and Plan D supplements(VERY expensive if under 65 bc that means u are disabled if u qualified for medicare). Disgust me. Ok on to the story.

My momma has always been super healthy. Medical history of hypertension and hyperparathyroidism(parathyroid removed in early 2000s). That's all. She has always had so much energy and literally ran circles around me. However, in late July of 2022 she started having bad stomach pains. Her primary dr ordered an ultrasound that came back clear. Very shortly after(days) she went back to see her primary Dr again who sent her straight to the ER. She still had pain and was beginning to turn yellow(jaundice). On 8/4/22 at the ER, her MRI showed a Pancreatic mass and biliary blockage. On 8/6/22 she had an ERCP with a Stent placed to drain the bile. She also had biopsies of her stomach that were negative except for a diagnosis of Celiacs disease. On 8/12/22 she had an upper endoscopy with pancreas biopsies that incidentally came back negative, but suspicious. On 8/30/22 she had another CT that showed a Pancreatic mass as well as a Liver mass. How is this possible? Basically if this is Pancreatic cancer it has went from a stage 1 to a stage 4 in less than a month. On 9/13 she had another MRI that showed both tumors this time. On 9/30/22 she had a CT guided biopsy of her liver. It was traumatic for her as they do not put you to sleep. Finally a diagnosis!

Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma with metz to the Liver(spread to her liver). Stage 4!!! How? My momma is healthy. She don't even smoke and rarely drinks.

Oncology referral. Port placed on 10/18/22 for chemo. Basically told from oncologist she has 3-6 months without chemo and 6-12 months with chemo. No other treatment options for stage 4. I was not willing to accept that. I told momma medical advancements had come so far and there had to be other options(as I was an RN but had no clue as to this cancer). Her lesions are small. There has to be something. We requested surgical referrals. I wanted a Whipple procedure(look it up, it's MAJOR). On 9/13/22 we seen a surgical oncologist at Piedmont in Atl. He was the worst. He said noone treats stage 4 Pancreatic cancer and she needed to go home, have a drink, and enjoy her 3-6 months. Chemo was useless. I was pissed. Blown away. Found another surgical oncologist at Emory. He was awesome. He spent alot of time with us and said if she gets chemo and the Liver tumor goes away, he could possibly do the Whipple. Yay!! Let's do it.

On 10/21/22 she had her first chemo infusion. The meds were Gem/Abrax. She had to have this treatment once a week for 3 weeks and then a week off. The infusion is outpatient for about 4-5 hours. Every 3 months they do a new CT scan or MRI. She ultimately had 36 doses of this chemo. She did really well except for some nausea, fatigue for a few days after, and eventually neuropathy(they lowered one med some bc that is a side effect from it). On 11/3/23 she had her first CT scan that showed no signs of cancer. Wow! Did we beat it?! I know my momma is special but this cancer is a mean one. So if she dont show any masses how could she even get a Whipple. No cancer anymore. Negative scans 2/24, 5/24. Clean scans for 6 months! Then 6/5/24 scan, it's back. Mass in Pancreas and 3 in Liver. How? Why? What did I miss? What could I have done or what opportunities did I miss out on because Noone informed us of anything! Noone has gave us any options. Noone said anything about maintenance chemo, radiation, or anything else. Should we have went back to the surgical oncologist? The chemo Dr says no options but chemo. The cancer was gone why would we even need to do a MAJOR surgery(in my head)? When it came back I was devastated. We all were. She has 2 daughters, one about to have her first children(twins), 5 grand children, 1 great grandchild with 1 on the way, and so many other family members and friends. We need her. She is the foundation of our family. So I did research before when she first got diagnosed. That wasn't enough. I have been immersed in research, joined every Pancreatic cancer group I can, messaged people, called people, and read stories. Researched all treatments as well as all big Cancer Institutes that will go BEYOND the "standard of care". We have options! However, these options come with their own set of issues.

So, my mom is on SSDI(social security disability insurance) since her diagnosis in Aug 2022. 2 years after that you are automatically enrolled in Medicare. Great right?! Not so much. Medicare is about $200 a month and don't include medications. You have to get another plan that u pay for monthly to "hopefully" cover your meds. Medicare only pays 80%. Who pays the 20%? Well you sign up for a supplemental plan to pick up the 20%. If u can find a company to offer one to you under 65 you prolly will have nothing left from your SSDI check to pay your bills. A Medicare advantage plan is much cheaper but they dictate most of your medical treatment and doctors. (Not counting the problems you will have if you ever want to go back to traditional medicare- prices and policies based on medical history). Treatment in the state of GEORGIA only. We need care outside of Ga. Ga has nothing to offer us. Absolutely nothing.

After all this research and speaking to people, including different Cancer Institutes and survivors, we have found several treatments available in different states. You may want to look these up. It's definitely progress in treatment for this cancer. 2 of the most promising are Nanoknife, and Intratumoral Immunotherapy. More info on these below.

Nanoknife: Dr. Donoway in Hollywood FL has GREAT success with stage 4 Pancreatic cancer patients using nanoknife. This is also called IRE therapy. It targets the actual tumors and anything else that dont look normal but does not damage vessels or other healthy tissue using electricity. Also called ablation. As the tumors die the natural immune response activates and builds up resistance to this cancer and starts fighting. Dr.Donaway's name is ALL over every Pancreatic group I'm involved with. He was the first in Florida to do this for this cancer and has been doing it over 10yrs. Most doctors will only do it for prostate cancer. It is FDA approved for prostate cancer. No reason other than big pharmas $$ that it has not been approved for other cancers it can successfully treat. For that reason, Medicare will only pay hospital charges(80%) related to the procedure but will not pay the Dr. because despite the research it has not been approved for treatment of stage 4 cancer of the pancreas. The Dr fees range from $9,000-15,000. This also does not include airfare and accommodations nor our 20%. Alot of money but not for my mommas life.

Intratumoral Immunotherapy is the other successful treatment for stage 4 Pancreatic cancer. The Williams Cancer Institute out of California does this. SUPER successful. Downfall: this is done in Cabo San Lucas Mexico, and is $40,000 per injection. Momma would need at the minimum 4 injections. This is definitely not a monetary goal that could be met. However, its very interesting advancements in cancer treatment that anyone who has cancer should know about. With both of these treatments chemo is given after as a clean up. There is still a chance it could show up somewhere else on down the line(with ANY treatments including the Whipple surgery) and then u explore ur options for that. Usually chemo and radiation. But people have literally been "cured" (10, 15, 20yrs cancer free).

So what this has come down to for us is, nanoknife is possibly feasible. Momma started her new chemo treatment on 8/21/24 and is not tolerating it well at all.(it is called 5FU and Vyexeos) She is having a hard time eating, drinking, and getting out of bed. Several GI issues that she did not have before. If you can't eat you don't stand a chance. Momma hadn't lost any weight before this these last 2 years. I know already this chemo is not going to be tolerable for her. Eventually the cancer becomes resistant to chemo. There are 3 chemo options and she is on #2. She needs this procedure ASAP. She is still so healthy and deserves to live and this may be our only chance.

If you have it in your heart and are financially able, please donate to help save my momma's life. Every dollar matters! If you are unable to donate, please keep us all in your prayers. Also feel free to message me with any questions or advice. Thank you for reading my momma's story.