I am 73 and have been extremely healthy my entire life. No broken bones, no crazy allergies, no unusual diseases. Slightly elevated blood pressure that's about it. Had a colonoscopy and hernia repair 6-7 years ago and a 2nd hernia repair this past February. That's it. But late last year after two blood tests confirmed it, I had a biopsy for prostate cancer. Unfortunately the results were positive. Radiation prep with medication and a tri-monthly shot began in April and actual radiation started in May. Completed 40 rounds in July.  I am on medicare, which so far has covered some of the costs, but not all. We live a very modest life in a small 3 bedroom home.

MRIs and CT scans, prior to actual treatment, had already pushed our costs, not covered by medicare, over $2000. The hernia repair added another $2400. 40 cycles of radiation were completed in July. Fortunately the side effects for me were minor and I never missed a day of work. But the costs for doctor visits, continuing medication and shots not covered by medicare, now exceed $12,000. From here on out costs for continuing monitoring and follow-up will continue to rise. Just keeping ahead of expenses is all we are hoping for. As regular monitoring of PSA levels continues in the months and years ahead, we are hoping the radiation did its job.

Support from those who are able will mean the world. We took this route as we feel like we have no other alternative. This is our end of the year push as your donation may be tax deductible. In trying to reach as many as possible we apologize if we've contacted you already.  Our only request is please don't share on Facebook. We appreciate however if you forward to any friends or associates. Whether your donation is named or anonymous does not matter. Every little bit we get will be helpful and a huge lift to us, as we try to stay ahead of our regular expenses. A million thanks in advance.