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Healthcare costs while mom fights cancer.

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Some of you may have learned that my mom, Maria Castillo, was very recently diagnosed with Stage IV Metastatic Clear Cell Renal Carcinoma, which has spread to both lungs, her liver, para-aortic lymph nodes, retroperitoneal lining, and possibly left iliac crest. The source is a very large tumor on her left kidney that’s 14.6 cm and growing. The diagnosis came unexpectedly on June 28th, as no one from either our maternal or paternal sides of the family had ever been diagnosed with cancer. We’ve always felt lucky that no one in the family had any of the scary health issues plaguing most Americans - heart disease, diabetes, or cancer.

Ever since being diagnosed, Mom has gone from being a fiercely independent woman - always working in her yard doing major landscaping and gardening, going to see my brother play at his weekly gigs, and taking trips with me - to being in and out of the ER and hospital 4 times. Since the diagnosis, Mom has suffered high fevers, hypercalcemia, severe anemia and fatigue, confusion, dizziness, nausea, constipation, diarrhea, and severe and awful inflammatory responses with multiple painful, swollen joints that have immobilized her in agony. The sudden onset of symptoms has been frightening.

Since I initially created this GoFundMe page, mom has been in and out of the ER and hospital 4 more times (for a total of 8 times). She’s endured biliary colic, an endoscopy to remove two large gallstones, and a cholecystectomy. She suffered through refeeding syndrome for 4 days after her gallbladder surgery and then started having seizures on 9/9/22. She’s currently in ICU recovering from PRES syndrome, which has affected her vision, as well as her motor function of her right arm and leg. Although her brain CT scan was clear of any blockage or bleeds, she has stroke-like symptoms that we hope she’ll recover from. The healing journey is going to be a long one.

Having to navigate the healthcare system to ensure Medicare coverage while also battling with the pharmacy for her much needed pain medications has added so much stress to an already stressful situation. Medicare does not cover the type of in-home healthcare that mom requires, so I will be leaving my job and moving out of my apartment in order to take care of my mom. It’s her goal to sell her house before she passes, should we have the privilege of completing such a task. There’s much work to be done, all while mom begins her cancer journey, which includes coordinating all of her doctors appointments with her pain management team, her PCP, her Oncologist, her PT and OT, and more. She’s already begun her first of many infusions to come in hopes of staving off the inevitable long enough for mom to check off her to-do list before she passes.

Entering into the world of cancer, or “the cancer journey,” will be a steep learning curve for us. All the dos and donts, all of the communications required, all of the detailed care that’s required, plus endless updates to friends and family to keep everyone in the loop. It’s overwhelming to say the least. The logistics alone could make a person fall apart. And then there are the cancer related costs. Thank god mom has Medicare and a Medigap plan, but even with this coverage, the cost of pain meds and oral chemo could bury a person in debt. It costs thousands of dollars for these prescriptions (10K for 9 months supply of oral chemo, 2K for 1 month supply of OxyContin). Thankfully there are substantial grants available through cancer related organizations for things like prescription meds, but it’s still not enough to cover ongoing costs.

But with your help (no matter how big or small your donation), mom may live long enough to fulfill her last wishes and battle this damn cancer. If you wish to send money through Venmo vs GoFundMe (since they take a percentage), please contact me directly. You may also mail us a check (again, contact me directly).

We thank you in advance for all of your love, support, and generosity!! We don’t know what we’d do without all of you! Mom has been a beacon of light for so many people, me most of all. I can’t stand to think of a world without her.

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    Christina Castillo
    Organizer
    Austin, TX

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