Support for Stephanie

Stephanie Townsend

Clinical Documentation Services (CDS) Team Member, Kaiser Permanente Riverside Dedicated Employee

Working at Kaiser Permanente in Riverside for nearly five years, Stephanie never thought she would be a patient one day. In July of 2017, at age 39, she was diagnosed with Stage 3 Colon Cancer. The diagnosis deeply impacted her husband Paul, daughter Paige, and her KP family as well.

At her age, with a lifetime ahead of her, Stephanie was determined to fight cancer. With support from her family and friends, she made it through grueling rounds of treatment. In April 2018, her doctors told her that cancer was no longer be detected in her body. The great news continued even after her first follow-up appointment when test results came back normal. For the first time in a while, life for Stephanie and her family finally started feeling normal again.

In August 2018, at age 40, Stephanie was diagnosed with Stage 4 metastatic colon cancer to the liver. The news again deeply impacted her and everyone who love and care for her. Having been through this before, Stephanie is determined to fight again. Currently undergoing treatment, when asked if she would like to share anything with her co-workers, Stephanie said, “I would like to share my greatest gratitude and love for my co-workers. They have supported me throughout this whole thing.”

She offers this advice to all who read her story: “If anything at all seems not normal, please go get a checkup. I’m very open with my diagnosis due to my age. Anything can happen to anyone at any time.” Stephanie’s stage 3 cancer was found during a sigmoidoscopy exam due to rectal bleeding. At stage 4, her cancer metastasis was found in a CT scan and with routine bloodwork. She reminds us all to take care of ourselves.

Together, we’re stepping up to help Stephanie fight cancer by allowing her to focus on her road to recovery and not on the financial strain of her battle. A GoFundMe was created for Stephanie and she will receive 100% of all funds collected. For more information contact, Remy Negrete at (909) [phone redacted] or [email redacted]. Please note, GoFundMe donations are appreciated but not expected.
Thank you!