Please Help Soussan To Beat Pancreatic Cancer
Donation protected
Soussan needs our immediate support.
I met Soussan in California in the summer 2013 when she guided my partner and I through the vineyards and countryside of Napa and Sonoma. I was drawn to her immediately. Her grace and intelligence, her wry and cutting sense of humor, and, most of all, the abundant zest for life that she radiates for those in her company. She invited us to her home for dinner where we drank fine wine, ate delicious food, and reveled through stories shared by several of her friends. We didn’t want our evening under the stars to end. We have kept in touch over the years, celebrating her birthday in Puerto Vallarta, and catching up over drinks in Las Vegas. I flashed back to those moments in Sonoma when news reached us this week that after a few years of “stomach troubles” she finally received a diagnosis confirming pancreatic cancer. We were gutted.
Her diagnosis, though sad, brings a sense of relief and certainty. At least she now knows what she must face. Unfortunately, the reality is that she will need surgery to remove a 3cm tumor on her pancreas, which a CT scan revealed, and follow-up chemotherapy. These procedures come with significant and life altering costs, as if the fires in California and daily life in 2020 haven’t already proved financially difficult enough. Surgery is estimated at $80,000 USD once Soussan can find a pancreatic specialist. She’s currently looking to Stanford and UCSF, both leaders in the pancreatic cancer field. Chemotherapy adds another $30,000 USD per course of treatment, and she may need more than one of these depending on the outcome of her surgery and the effectiveness of the initial chemo procedure. She is currently negotiating with her insurance company for coverage, but prospects seem bleak. If anyone in her extended network can link her to a great medical team or guide her through the insurance gauntlet, this would be a tremendous help.
Time is of the essence. It has taken almost two years to get to a diagnosis and during that time the tumor has continued to grow. The concern is that without surgery the tumor will continue to expand and affect nearby organs and structures which will make surgery more complicated or altogether impossible.
We are hoping to raise $60,000 USD toward Soussan’s medical costs and post-surgical care.
Any donation amount will help.
Thank you so much for your empathy and support.
I met Soussan in California in the summer 2013 when she guided my partner and I through the vineyards and countryside of Napa and Sonoma. I was drawn to her immediately. Her grace and intelligence, her wry and cutting sense of humor, and, most of all, the abundant zest for life that she radiates for those in her company. She invited us to her home for dinner where we drank fine wine, ate delicious food, and reveled through stories shared by several of her friends. We didn’t want our evening under the stars to end. We have kept in touch over the years, celebrating her birthday in Puerto Vallarta, and catching up over drinks in Las Vegas. I flashed back to those moments in Sonoma when news reached us this week that after a few years of “stomach troubles” she finally received a diagnosis confirming pancreatic cancer. We were gutted.
Her diagnosis, though sad, brings a sense of relief and certainty. At least she now knows what she must face. Unfortunately, the reality is that she will need surgery to remove a 3cm tumor on her pancreas, which a CT scan revealed, and follow-up chemotherapy. These procedures come with significant and life altering costs, as if the fires in California and daily life in 2020 haven’t already proved financially difficult enough. Surgery is estimated at $80,000 USD once Soussan can find a pancreatic specialist. She’s currently looking to Stanford and UCSF, both leaders in the pancreatic cancer field. Chemotherapy adds another $30,000 USD per course of treatment, and she may need more than one of these depending on the outcome of her surgery and the effectiveness of the initial chemo procedure. She is currently negotiating with her insurance company for coverage, but prospects seem bleak. If anyone in her extended network can link her to a great medical team or guide her through the insurance gauntlet, this would be a tremendous help.
Time is of the essence. It has taken almost two years to get to a diagnosis and during that time the tumor has continued to grow. The concern is that without surgery the tumor will continue to expand and affect nearby organs and structures which will make surgery more complicated or altogether impossible.
We are hoping to raise $60,000 USD toward Soussan’s medical costs and post-surgical care.
Any donation amount will help.
Thank you so much for your empathy and support.
Organizer and beneficiary
Soussan Taleghani
Organizer
Santa Rosa, CA
Mariam Salarian
Beneficiary