Justin "Scotty" Tecce's Cancer Fund
Donation protected
While those of you that have met me through my worldly musical travels may know me as Scotty (which is my middle name plus a "y" for added coolness) and my childhood friends and family members may know me by my first name Justin (the truth is out!), what most people do not know is what I have been going through for the past few years. On Christmas week of 2012, just over a month after attending the Celebration of Life for one of my best friends who tragically did not survive his encounter with tongue cancer, I was diagnosed with Advanced Prostate Cancer at the early age of 36. This was after my mother was already diagnosed with Advanced Breast Cancer and in early 2014 was persuaded by her oncologist into a chemotherapy regimine that her body was not able to handle, that unfortunatly took her life later that year. To add more insult to cancer injury, at the same time my mom was being pumped with chemo my sister was also diagnosed with breast cancer which was quickly followed by her having to go through extensive surgery. So needless to say "The Big C" has pretty much been my life for the past few years and has regretfully kept me from what I love most - music (not that I didn't try to keep on rockin' for the first year or so there).
When they discovered my cancer it was already Stage IV and had spread out from my prostate and into my bones. I visited numerous urologists and oncologists at some of the top cancer centers in the country, but they all told me there was no cure for my condition. With each visit I hoped the next place would have the newest, latest, greatest miracle treatment but none of them did. They all offered me hormone therapy, which involved either a $3000 shot I had to take every few months that would slowly destroy my testicles or full-on castration (yes, they told me that with a straight face), but also made sure I understood it was not a cure and at best would only buy me anywhere from a few months to a couple years before the cancer would adapt and return stronger than ever. In my initial dazed and confused state, they were able to scare me into getting jabbed by one of those babies and I quickly realized that a man in his 30's is not meant to be without testosterone. Let's just say the side effects were way worse for me than the cancer itself so I abandoned that idea and decided there had to be another way.
I looked into diet as well as detoxing and supplements and made significant changes to the way I was living. Before long I found I had completely turned my less-than-healthy musician lifestyle around and felt better than ever (dispite various bone pains from the metastasis). I even found myself doing yoga - and liking it! My new lifestyle seemed to do wonders in slowing down my aggressive Gleason Score 8 cancer (they say prostate cancer in younger men spreads much more rapidly than those who get it later in life) but it was not enough. The scans showed that more spots were slowly appearing around my bones, including my spine, shoulder blades and pelvis, and when nodules started forming on my lungs I knew it was time to stop messing around.
I did more research and found a cancer clinic in Mexico that not only supported and encouraged my new healthy habits, but also offered numerous other treatments from other countries that are non-toxic and have been shown to destroy cancer cells. I began a viral-therapy, and in 3 months the results were amazing. The tumors on my prostate had shrunk so much that the volume of my prostate was reduced by 24%. More importantly, Color Doppler Ultrasound showed that the blood vessels that had grown to feed the tumors had reduced by 80%! This was a month ago, so of course I'm continuing that treatment and have thrown another one in the mix for good measure. Trips to the clinic are such a positive experience as well. The doctors all truly care and do not look at me like I am a lost cause (a look I know all too well) and the other patients are truly inspiring. With every visit I meet more and more strong people, many with conditions way worse than mine, that are reversing their cancer and are living happy, healthy lives. The only downside is that the treatments and trips to Mexico are indeed expensive and unfortunately and not surprisingly they don't take Obamacare!
That is where I need your help. My career choice as a musician has regretfully not left me filthy rich and unfortunately my ability to work has dwindled over the past year or so, thus the need for said crowd-funding project! I hate begging for money (especially knowing that most of my friends are not-so-filthy rich musicians themselves), but anything you can donate to the cause would go a long way to ensuring I am able to keep up my treatments and continue to see doctors that spread the feeling of hope - which is way more important to overcoming a cancer diagnosis than most may realize!
On a side note, while it is true that when I was first diagnosed I was scared s**tless, I have now accepted that there is truly no reason to fear. I have realized that cancer is not an outside invader but part of my body made of my own cells, and instead of declaring war I have decided to embrace it and live as long as I can while coaxing my body to want to return to a healthier state. Regardless of how long I am able to keep on kickin' it with my mutated cell friends, it puts me at ease to be able to say that I am truly happy. I have been blessed to be able to make a living (yes, I call it that!) doing what I love, and I am truly grateful to have been able to travel to all the places I've been and for all the amazing people I have met along the way. If this were the end of the road I can honestly say that it has been a wonderful ride, but with your help to continue my treatments I'm pretty confident that I'll be on the road again before you know it!
Thank you in advance for your help. God bless!
Justin aka "Scotty"
P.S. As for my sister, I'm happy to say her last PET scan came back completely clean, she is in the best shape of her entire life, and may I add has been the greatest caregiver a big brother could ever ask for. Love ya, sis!
When they discovered my cancer it was already Stage IV and had spread out from my prostate and into my bones. I visited numerous urologists and oncologists at some of the top cancer centers in the country, but they all told me there was no cure for my condition. With each visit I hoped the next place would have the newest, latest, greatest miracle treatment but none of them did. They all offered me hormone therapy, which involved either a $3000 shot I had to take every few months that would slowly destroy my testicles or full-on castration (yes, they told me that with a straight face), but also made sure I understood it was not a cure and at best would only buy me anywhere from a few months to a couple years before the cancer would adapt and return stronger than ever. In my initial dazed and confused state, they were able to scare me into getting jabbed by one of those babies and I quickly realized that a man in his 30's is not meant to be without testosterone. Let's just say the side effects were way worse for me than the cancer itself so I abandoned that idea and decided there had to be another way.
I looked into diet as well as detoxing and supplements and made significant changes to the way I was living. Before long I found I had completely turned my less-than-healthy musician lifestyle around and felt better than ever (dispite various bone pains from the metastasis). I even found myself doing yoga - and liking it! My new lifestyle seemed to do wonders in slowing down my aggressive Gleason Score 8 cancer (they say prostate cancer in younger men spreads much more rapidly than those who get it later in life) but it was not enough. The scans showed that more spots were slowly appearing around my bones, including my spine, shoulder blades and pelvis, and when nodules started forming on my lungs I knew it was time to stop messing around.
I did more research and found a cancer clinic in Mexico that not only supported and encouraged my new healthy habits, but also offered numerous other treatments from other countries that are non-toxic and have been shown to destroy cancer cells. I began a viral-therapy, and in 3 months the results were amazing. The tumors on my prostate had shrunk so much that the volume of my prostate was reduced by 24%. More importantly, Color Doppler Ultrasound showed that the blood vessels that had grown to feed the tumors had reduced by 80%! This was a month ago, so of course I'm continuing that treatment and have thrown another one in the mix for good measure. Trips to the clinic are such a positive experience as well. The doctors all truly care and do not look at me like I am a lost cause (a look I know all too well) and the other patients are truly inspiring. With every visit I meet more and more strong people, many with conditions way worse than mine, that are reversing their cancer and are living happy, healthy lives. The only downside is that the treatments and trips to Mexico are indeed expensive and unfortunately and not surprisingly they don't take Obamacare!
That is where I need your help. My career choice as a musician has regretfully not left me filthy rich and unfortunately my ability to work has dwindled over the past year or so, thus the need for said crowd-funding project! I hate begging for money (especially knowing that most of my friends are not-so-filthy rich musicians themselves), but anything you can donate to the cause would go a long way to ensuring I am able to keep up my treatments and continue to see doctors that spread the feeling of hope - which is way more important to overcoming a cancer diagnosis than most may realize!
On a side note, while it is true that when I was first diagnosed I was scared s**tless, I have now accepted that there is truly no reason to fear. I have realized that cancer is not an outside invader but part of my body made of my own cells, and instead of declaring war I have decided to embrace it and live as long as I can while coaxing my body to want to return to a healthier state. Regardless of how long I am able to keep on kickin' it with my mutated cell friends, it puts me at ease to be able to say that I am truly happy. I have been blessed to be able to make a living (yes, I call it that!) doing what I love, and I am truly grateful to have been able to travel to all the places I've been and for all the amazing people I have met along the way. If this were the end of the road I can honestly say that it has been a wonderful ride, but with your help to continue my treatments I'm pretty confident that I'll be on the road again before you know it!
Thank you in advance for your help. God bless!
Justin aka "Scotty"
P.S. As for my sister, I'm happy to say her last PET scan came back completely clean, she is in the best shape of her entire life, and may I add has been the greatest caregiver a big brother could ever ask for. Love ya, sis!
Organizer
Scotty Tecce
Organizer
Pflugerville, TX
