Support Mark's Fight Against Stage 4 Cancer

I am organizing this fundraiser for my husband, Mark, in support of his fight against rectosigmoid adenocarcinoma.

In May 2023, Mark's world changed unexpectedly. What started as a visit to the ER for blood in his stool, where a colonoscopy and PET scan revealed a very large tumor occupying much of his colon. He was looking at stage 3 cancer. Three weeks later, he underwent surgery at Chandler Hospital to remove a 7cm x 8cm tumor. He was given an ileostomy due to some complications reconnecting his colon. During chemo, he had a severe rheumatoid arthritis flare-up and he fought with an ileostomy that leaked daily and caused some bad rashes. After six months, he went back into surgery to reverse the ileostomy, but he fought hard and stayed positive.

He continued 3-month scans and blood work, and everything was going well for about six months, but then his CEA started to rise. It went from normal (2.3) after the surgery to 12, then 21, then 36 every three months. All the while, he had a new CT scan that showed nothing, and his CEA continued to rise. It was now at 48, and his surgeon ordered a PET scan. To everyone's shock, it showed no cancer, even though his CEA climbed to 55. Three months later, it was at 68, and his surgeon ordered another PET scan. Sadly, this time it had returned to his colon and had metastasized to his liver, making it a stage 4 diagnosis now.

Stage 4 CRC is considered incurable, but there are more treatment options available than in the past, which gives us hope. He's going back for another surgery to remove part of his liver and to have microwave ablation on the parts that can't be removed. He is also having an HAI pump put inside his abdomen to deliver high doses of chemotherapy directly to liver tumors, bypassing the rest of his body. He will be on that for 5 months along with normal chemo via his chest port. In April, he starts radiation treatment that will be Monday-Friday for five weeks (25 treatments).

Mark's medical expenses will not be fully covered by insurance, and even though he was able to work through the initial cancer, this time he will be unable to work due to the amount of treatments he will be going through.

I'm making this with hopes that Mark's community can come together and help him beat cancer so he can get back to being a husband, father, grandfather, and friend.

I'm asking for your support—whether through donations, sharing this fundraiser, or keeping Mark and our family in your thoughts. Every contribution, no matter the size, makes a meaningful difference in his fight.

Thank you for your love and support.