Hello friends, family, and neighbors -

Two and a half years ago my dad, John Petruska, was diagnosed with esophageal adenocarcinoma. Over an eight month period, he under went chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery. After that time, he was told he was cancer free but there was a 50% chance of recurrence. Here we are 19 months later, with a diagnosis of gastrointestinal adenocarcinoma.

August 25th, my dad went into the emergency room having difficulty breathing. After testing and being admitted, it was found that his hemoglobin was dangerously low. After further testing and an endoscopy, they found cancer inside his stomach. The tumor and cancer was causing internal bleeding, making for a difficult hospital stay.

Since the new diagnosis, my dad is back on his feeding tube, has been through chemo and immunotherapy treatments which has been working. He has two more rounds scheduled. After chemo, he has a major surgery scheduled to remove the entirety of his stomach. After this high risk surgery, he will be in the hospital for a minimum of 14 days. At this time, we are uncertain of what to expect of his recovery.

Due to his condition, scheduled treatments - my dad has not been able to work due to the physical level required to work his position. He has had a number of complications this time around with additional hospital visits.

As we all know - cancer is EXPENSIVE. Costs have gone up since his previous diagnosis with higher premiums, deductibles, and medical injections that are not covered by insurance.

We have been working through this, mostly quietly, as a family. This has been a difficult time - facing a reality that we didn't think we would see again. Our family was surrounded with so much love and support last time, and we need help again. Any donations are appreciated. They will go towards the cost of living and assist with covering medical expenses while John undergoes treatment and recovering from a very scary surgery.

John is taking everything day by day. Right now, when he is not going through his treatments - he is spending time with his kids and grandkids as much as he can.

If you are not able to donate, please consider sharing this link. Please keep John and his loved ones in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you for supporting John and his fight against cancer.