Help Suzy Kick Cancer

Life can change in an instant. No one knows this better than someone who has received an unexpected cancer diagnosis. That’s exactly what happened to Suzanne Kutcher this July of 2019. A nagging cold + a plane flight left Suzy with a “clogged ear” that sent her to her doctor and then her ENT. Swollen adenoids concerned her ENT, who called for their removal and biopsy to rule out possible lymphoma. Then came the life shift – a diagnosis of nasopharyngeal cancer.

Anyone who knows Suzy, knows her passion for helping those who need help most – whether it’s through her teaching art to special needs children or her therapy dog volunteer work helping hospital patients, as well as kids receiving group counseling. Suzy was set to start a new job in September at a Special Education school for students with multiple learning disabilities, as well as anxiety, mood, behavior and autism spectrum disorders. This divorced mom of two (equally amazing) daughters, had subbed there before, and made such an impression on the staff and students that they sought her out to offer her a full time position. Suzy's innate love for children makes her a natural teacher, but it is her drive to help others that makes her shine as a teacher to special needs students. She can see the potential in children others may not, and sees the learning obstacles they face as her own personal challenges to help them overcome. She simply sees the best in everyone and wants the best for them as well. There are people in this world who “pay it forward” and people who start the ball rolling in the first place. Suzy does both.

Now, Suzy is the one who needs support. Head and neck cancers, as nasopharyngeal cancer is classified, are complex due to their location. Nerve endings that affect critical functions such as hearing, vision, speech and swallowing are close together, so treatment – whether in the form of surgery or radiation – requires pinpoint precision. The good news: there’s a type of radiation therapy referred to as Proton Therapy that is extremely precise and is the treatment option recommended for Suzy from her head and neck oncologist, who is confident she will beat this thing with flying colors. The not-so-good news: this therapy costs $15,000 and isn’t covered by Suzy’s insurance because it is performed at a facility that is separate from Sloan-Kettering Hospital and is therefore considered out-of-network.

As someone who has been blessed to have Suzy in my life as a best friend/sister for close to 30 years, I wanted to help initiate this GoFundMe page to help her with medical expenses - just a small way in which I might be able to help her through this challenging time, and only a fraction of “paying forward” all this amazing woman has done for me and so many others. 

I’m asking you to donate what you can – no amount is too small (or too big – just throwing that in there in case someone just won the lottery!). And I’m asking you to please share this post with your family and friends, your social media circle, your colleagues at work and anyone who wants to lend a helping hand to someone in need, or who just wants to put forth a kind gesture, or has been the recipient of some kindness that inspires them to “pay it forward.”

Life can change in an instant – and it can change for the better in an instant as well. Please be a part of what makes the “better” part happen.

Note: The family wanted to let everyone know that in the event donated funds exceed Suzy's cancer care costs, the extra money will be donated to a cancer charity in the spirit of paying it forward.
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