Marty McFly's Cancer Treatment Fund

On March 5th, our world was turned upside down when I found a large mass in Marty's mouth. The mass was removed the following day and our vet sent it out for testing. We waited a week for the results. It was a week of torture and we were worried sick. We got the dreadful news on March 14th: our boy Marty McFly has cancer. We are gutted.

Marty McFly's Diagnosis:

Amelanotic malignant melanoma, found on his soft palate. Oral malignant melanoma is a locally aggressive cancer and readily invades normal tissue and bone. It also has a moderate potential to spread to other parts of the body, such as local lymph nodes and lungs.

Because the mass was so large, it left a hole in Marty's palate. Our vet had a hard time closing it up and unfortunately, the stitches didn't hold, so Marty needed another surgery. We took him to Maine Veterinary Medical Center on March 19th for a surgery consult. They put a plan together and took him to surgery right away. Marty had more tissue from his soft palate removed, as well as bone that was near the mass, and a lymph node. The surgeon then did some reconstructive surgery in Marty's mouth. We are hoping that his palate heals properly this time.

The extracted tissue, bone, and lymph node were sent out for testing and we waited another week as Marty was recovering from surgery. On March 28th, we received the best possible news!! Marty's biopsy results came back with clean margins; there was no detectable cancer!! The surgeon removed it all!! This puts the cancer diagnosis at Stage II and Marty is a great candidate for immunotherapy, which he has already started.

Marty McFly's Treatment Plan:

Marty will be receiving the ONCEPT vaccine, a DNA-based vaccine used to treat oral melanoma in dogs. The benefits for Marty are that it may improve his survival time past the 8-10 months that is estimated if he were to only have the surgery. It also may reduce the risk of melanoma recurrence after surgery. The vaccine is administered as a series of four injections, given every two weeks, with a booster injection given every six months. We did a lot of research and have heard good outcomes, so we are hopeful that it improves Marty's quality of life and gives him many more years with us!

We have been a mess of emotions over these past 4 weeks, just barely keeping our heads above water. Not only have we felt the mental and emotional burden of Marty's cancer diagnosis, but we are facing a major financial burden. The total expenses of Marty's care since March 5th is $13,003.40 and we can expect a few thousand more to be added to that over the next few month as we continue with his treatments. It's a lot, we know. But Marty McFly is our baby. As a happy and healthy 12-year-old, with no other ailments, we know he has a fighting chance so we are all in. With that being said, we need financial help. If you can, please consider donating to help us pay for Marty's cancer treatment. Our little family will be forever grateful for your kindness and support!!

Thank you,

Alissa, Tim & Marty McFly

Keegan and Puppy thank you too. They love their brother so, so much!