Support for the Mlynek Family

I’m reaching out on behalf of our dear friends, Giselle and Mark, who are facing an incredibly difficult and heartbreaking situation right now.

Mark has recently been diagnosed with High-Grade Glioblastoma, an aggressive and incurable form of brain cancer. This diagnosis came after a series of unsettling health issues that led to numerous tests, scans, and ultimately, the discovery of multiple brain masses. The news has been devastating for their family, and now they’re facing the unimaginable.

As many of you know, Mark is an incredible husband, father, son and friend. Giselle, their kids, and everyone close to them are trying to navigate this challenge with as much love and strength as they can. The focus now is on keeping Mark as comfortable as possible and making the most of the time they have together.

This is where we, as a community of friends and family, can step in. They need our help to ease this burden. Your contributions, no matter how big or small, will make a huge difference in helping them focus on what truly matters—being together as a family during this incredibly tough time.

Please consider donating if you’re able. If not, simply sharing this page with others or keeping Mark and his family in your thoughts and prayers means the world to them.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your support, love, and kindness. All proceeds will go directly to Giselle and the kids.

From Giselle:

Around May 11, Mark had a fall while he was weedeating at the farm. He said he got dizzy, lost his balance, and went down. He still has a mark on his knee from it—it wasn’t that long ago. He hadn’t been feeling quite right for a few days before, but we didn’t think much of it until the fall. That’s when we called the doctor and scheduled an appointment for the 15th.

At the appointment, the doctor recommended we go straight to the hospital. We went to Mercy, and within an hour they diagnosed him with Vertigo and what they called Arterial Low Blood Pressure, saying it could take a while to improve. But Mark kept feeling worse and had more falls.

We went back to the doctor on May 30th—this time in a wheelchair. The doctor was surprised the hospital hadn’t done a CT scan before and immediately ordered one. We had the scan on Tuesday, June 3rd. Before we even left, a tech came running into the lobby saying the doctor would be calling us shortly. The phone rang. He said, “Giselle, I am so sorry—Mark has many masses in his brain. You need to get him to Good Samaritan immediately.”

At Good Sam, more scans confirmed the masses, but they couldn’t tell us exactly what it was until a biopsy was done. Mark was admitted, and they scheduled a craniotomy for Tuesday, June 10th. All Mark could think about in the meantime was being home for Gianna’s graduation party on Saturday, June 7th. Since nothing was happening before the surgery, they allowed him to go home and be there for it. That meant everything to him!

Surgery went well on the 10th, and then we waited. On Friday, the doctors came in with the results. They told us, with deep regret, that Mark has High-Grade Glioblastoma. It’s not curable. The best treatment could offer was the possibility of a little more time, but not without great cost. We made the decision not to put him through chemo and radiation, and instead focus on his comfort and time with us.

This Tuesday, a bed finally opened at hospice, and that’s where we are now. Mark can only slightly move his right arm, has seizures, and can barely speak. It’s devastating—watching this happen so quickly, watching him go through this. I’m heartbroken, not just for him, but for our kids. This all feels so unfair.