Update September 12, 2024- Anthony started his chemotherapy treatment yesterday with his first infusion. He will continue to receive chemo infusions and pills through fall and into early winter, ending just a couple weeks after Baby Lontayo's due date.

 He did receive good news today: the results are back from the Signatera Cancer Blood Test and there appears to be no more cancer cells circulating in his blood. 

 Anthony and his family want to thank the community again for their outpouring of support, prayers, and well wishes. 

Update August 3, 2024 - Anthony had his first oncology appointment yesterday. Pending some test results he is looking at 3-6 months of chemotherapy infusions alongside oral chemotherapy. There was one "hotspot" where cancer may still be active. If that is the case Anthony will be undergoing another surgery to remove any affected tissue. He is recovering well from the colectomy and is focused on regaining his strength and weight as he has lost 50 pounds since the end of June. 

Because of his young age and the location of the cancer, the oncologist also highly recommended Anthony and Isabella get genetic testing for their daughters to see if they have the markers for predisposition of the same cancer. 

Anthony and his family are overwhelmed and extremely thankful to their friends and community for the well wishes and kind donations.

July 21, 2024 - Hello, I am sure many of you know Anthony Lontayo, either from the many, many years he has worked at Safeway, the hard hours he has put in at the gym, or maybe seeing his friendly face around the community alongside his long-time partner Isabella and their beautiful 2.5 year old daughter Azalea.

For the past few weeks, Anthony has been struggling in pain that was first diagnosed as colitis (inflammation in the colon). But on July 11th, he woke up in excruciating pain. Isabella took him to the hospital where they discovered a large mass almost completely blocking his colon. Anthony was transported to Renown Medical Center in Reno, NV for emergency surgery to remove it. He underwent a procedure called a Right Hemicolectomy in which the surgeons removed the upper half of his colon.

Fortunately, they were able to attach the remaining half to his small intestine.

As Anthony started his long recovery from this major abdominal surgery, he and his family awaited answers about what had caused this.

Unfortunately the results did show that it had been a malignant tumor.

The first step for Anthony is to work on recovering from the removal which, unfortunately, is not progressing as fast as originally hoped due to complications. During his continued hospitalization he will begin his appointments with oncology to discuss future treatment options of the stage 2 cancer. This is the first step in what will be a difficult journey for him and his family.

During this trying time, his family has been by his side as much as possible. Isabella has been juggling taking care of their toddler with the help of family and friends, paying rent and bills, and keeping Anthony’s loved ones up-to-date on his health. All while, she is also tending to her high risk pregnancy and ensuring the health of their baby girl on the way in a short 4 months.

It's very difficult for this family to ask for help. However, both Anthony and Isabella have been out of work for some weeks. Isabella is a stay at home mom most of the week while Anthony works full time and stays home with their daughter on the days that Isabella works part time. They are doing what they can through their jobs to receive paid leave but the weeks that have gone by in doctor’s offices and hospitals have already taken their financial toll - and it has only just begun.

This fund would help Isabella and Anthony pay their bills, cover transportation and lodging costs, help with childcare for their daughter, and assist with medical expenses that will not be covered by insurance. Please donate and share this fundraiser to a wider audience so Anthony and Isabella can focus on recovery and their future as a new family of 4.

Anything is appreciated. There are no words to explain what it would mean to them and to everyone who is greatly concerned about this lively young father’s health.