Cindy is Battling Advanced Stage Cancer!!
Donation protected
It is with a very heavy heart that I am writing this to ask for your help to support Cindy Pickard. She is my best friend for 30+yrs, Jim & Shirley's daughter, Pam's sister, and Morgan's Aunt, who is dearly loved. She is also a friend and family member to many others. She is in a battle to fight for her life and needs your help.
Cindy has been diagnosed with Stage 3 (advanced stage) Muliple Myeloma (MM), Amyloidosis, and stage 4 kidney failure.
This started abruptly after her living a seemingly healthy life, as if often can. Sure, she hadn't been feeling well for a while, but she brushed it off as she was going through some very difficult times in her life.
This has been a whirlwind of emotions and confusion for her. It is like being in a dream-like state while quickly being urged to follow doctor's orders without time to fully digest or understand what is happening.
Even as I write these words, it is still hard to believe. There was very little warning and then we hear the doctor say that word.....cancer. That triggered an immediate sense of urgency for her to make decisions on the fly and start fighting.
"This is all happening so fast," she often says. "Cancer does not wait," I say. I go through this journey with her with an admiration of her strength. I have always known her to be a strong person, but she is much stronger than I ever knew. Cancer, meet your match !
She has been receiving chemo treatment for about 12 weeks now and has responded very well (she is kicking ASS). She has continued to work as a hairdresser while receiving chemo weekly and attending multiple doctors appointments. She has been a trooper, to say the least. Now she is facing the next big challenge in her fight to beat cancer.
Her hemotologists have expressed that she needs stem cell transplant to fight the MM, especially because she has some sort of marker suggesting her cancer will reoccur. They will harvest the stem cells from her, treat them, transplant them back, and she will also be receiving a heavier chemo treatment.
Stem cell transplant (SCT) is her best option, but it also means she will have to be out of work for some months. She is receiving her SCT at Wilmot Cancer Institute (a center of excellence) at Strong Memorial in Rochester, NY. Her doctors expect her immune system and body will need a few months to recover from treatment.
Since she is self-employed, disability is going to be the bare minimum and this income will not cover her mortgage, booth rental at her salon, and other bills.
Please donate anything you can to help her get through these few months. She begins the harvest the 2nd week of October.
I will keep this updated with her progress on this journey. We are NOT letting cancer win! Thank you for ANY help you can give in the coming months. #Fuckcancer #CancerSucks
Organizer and beneficiary
Theresa Shaver
Organizer
Syracuse, NY
Cindy Pickard
Beneficiary