Help with Greg Doster's Cancer Treatments

Hi, my name is Devin and I'm fundraising for my dad, Greg. He's been through a lot in the last few months but to summarize, allopathic medicine has failed us and our last hope is alternative treatments. Unfortunately, none of this is covered by insurance. We've been paying out of pocket but now are at the point where we have to pick and choose what treatments we can pursue due to budget. There are several that are very hopeful for his case, so we're doing everything we can to keep moving forward!

 

Back in July, my dad ended up in the ER where they diagnosed diverticulitis, gave him an antibiotic, and sent him home. A couple of months later, the same pain persisted and he went to a different ER. I'll never forget that day, sitting in a coffee shop watching the boys play, and my dad called me to tell me he had stage 4 colon cancer that had spread to the liver. This flipped our world upside down and it hasn't been the same since.

 

At this point, cancer wasn't confirmed so we were hopeful it could possibly be something else. Unfortunately, he ended up in the ER yet again before his scheduled appointment and spent a week there while they did an insane amount of tests, biopsies, and a colonoscopy. A week later, we went to the oncologist to review the results. She confirmed he had stage 4 colon cancer that had metastasized to the liver, and it was in fact a very rare type of cancer. She said they see less than 500 cases of this type per year and we had to start chemo immediately.

 

Normally, they would do surgery to remove the mass in the colon but she didn't want to delay starting chemo. He did one round and a few days later ended up in the ER with a bowel perforation where they performed emergency surgery. (Thank you, God, for Dr. Zyromski with St. V's!) Before taking him back, the surgeon told me this did not look promising. At that moment, I thought it would be the last time I ever talked to my dad. It happened so fast and was terrifying. Luckily, the surgery was a success, but poor dad woke up with a stoma and colostomy.

 

We spent the week of Thanksgiving in the hospital recovering from surgery before starting chemo again a couple weeks later. After the third round of chemo and immunotherapy (it took FOREVER for him to get approved for that) they did another CT that showed his cancer was growing as fast as ever and the drugs were not effective.

 

My dad has had an AMAZING attitude through all this despite continuously being knocked down and given only months to live. We were fortunate to get in with a functional medicine doctor that specializes in cancer and have started treatments that give us hope.

 

Thinking of my boys not growing up with their grandpa or even remembering him rips my heart in two. We're doing everything we can to make this happen for him. He's been so sick he can hardly get up the stairs, let alone work a job. Unfortunately, even with getting disability expedited, his won't start until May. Any amount helps and prayers, well-wishes, and encouragement are GREATLY appreciated.

Thank you!
- The O'Connors