Justine's Brain Tumor
Donation protected
Please Help Us Get Rid of the Little Monster Brain Tumor Living Rent Free in Justine's Head
In February 2019, a bump on the head sent Our girl to the Emergency room. Luckily the injury was minimal, but in the course of testing a CAT scan discovered a brain tumor.
Justine had been having headaches, but like any of us, didn't give them much thought, took aspirin and got on with her busy life and career at Leightons. After months of battling, numerous phone calls, denials, conflicting information from dozens of call center agents all over the country, Anthem Blue Cross finally grudgingly approved her to see the neurosurgery specialists at UCSF. Wonderful professional folks.
Since then, they have been monitoring the little Monster through MRIs. Now the bad tumor is growing in a really tricky location and her symptoms have increased dramatically, affecting her daily life. If left unchecked this tumor can cause paralysis, severe disability and eventually be fatal.
Her team of physicians have scheduled her to have Gamma Knife Radiation next month in August, which has very good success rates and will hopefully shrink and kill the tumor and avoid invasive surgery. The treatment is outpatient, and consists of 5 rounds of radiation, MRI, labwork and other testing over a span of 10 days.
Justine is a devoted wife and mother of 2 boys, Lucas is 10 and Logan is 5. Her husband Ken has just been laid off from the company he has worked at for 27 years, victims of the Covid pandemic, with no reopening date for the foreseeable future. Justine has been working reduced hours as the boys school will not be opening up soon either. She faces several months at home recovering after her treatment.
Ken will have to stay in San Francisco with her for the 10 days, driving her to the hospital, providing care, waiting outside, he can't even go into the facility with her, and keeping her safe from any chance of contact with Covid, as UCSF outpatient housing is not available at this time.
We have secured a private VRBO accommodation, being in San Francisco everything is extremely expensive. Travel, meals and accommodations are estimated to be approximately 5,000 dollars.
Justine's out of pocket medications, co-payments and yearly deductible on her PPO are hovering at 8,000 to 9,000 dollars alone.
We hope that with the help of family, friends, and the community we can raise enough funds to meet her needs and lessen the stress she is going through so that she can remain as healthy and comfortable as possible as she goes through this ordeal.
These boys need their Mom to be around for many years to come.
We understand that this is a rough and trying time with so much uncertainty for everyone.
We are very grateful and appreciative of any and all help our community can find it in their hearts to give.
Thank You All and God Bless You
Please pass this on.
Organizer and beneficiary
Jeni Lee Smith
Organizer
Merced, CA
Justine Tarleton
Beneficiary
