Support Lynne Bell in her Brave Fight Against Rare Cancer

UPDATE: 05/24/2024: The scan came back clear. Her liver counts were slightly elevated, but there is nothing to worry about at this point. We just have to make sure they keep an eye on it. She is still not sure if the dizziness was from the Chemo or something else, but for the most part, it is gone. Well, everything is looking good, and she is starting to feel like her old self again. She was able to eat ice cream (one of her most favorite foods). The doctor decided to start Chemo again. The last Chemo did not go well. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong. They gave her the first IV Chemo, and she started to have tingling in her hands and face. The nurse said they would stop that Chemo and give her some Benadryl, which would make her tired. They did that and then had to wait for her to recover enough to start a different Chemo. Once that Chemo started, she started to have serious cramping in her hands and feet. The cramps were so bad that when she tried to get out of bed to go to the bathroom, she had no control of her feet and almost fell to the floor. The nurse had to take her bathroom. Her hands were so cramped and disformed that she couldn't get the paper towel to dry her hands. The nurse started another medication to combat the cramping, but this one would wake her up and could make her hyper. Then, wait for her body to recover from that and start another Chemo. She was only able to handle 3/4 of the Chemo that she should have had that day. Her regular Chemo appointment ended up taking 8 hours. Then they told her she could go home. Lynne went to the hospital in a cab and was expecting to go home in the cab. Remember, she lives alone. She couldn't take a cab because she still couldn't walk. Panicked, Lynne reached out to her son, who luckily was able to leave work and pick her up and take her home. She was baffled that she came to the hospital in a cab and walked in on her own and had to be taken out in a wheelchair. Her son stayed for the weekend and took care of her as she could not feed or take care of herself. I spoke to her regularly, and she was very sick, tired, and in pain and not able to use her arm that the IV was in. 10 days later and she was just starting to be able to softly touch the arm. She was too sick to celebrate Mother's Day or her Birthday. My heart goes out to her and I wish I lived closer so that I can help her out. From this distance, the best I can do is to continue to update this GoFundMe to help take some of the financial burden off of her while she fights her battle with Cancer. If you can donate to Lynne, it would mean the world to her and I. It does not matter how much; any amount will help. Thank you for reading this post and for any donation that you can give.

Sincerely,

Debbie and Lynne

UPDATE: 04/12/2024. Lynne's dizziness is getting a little bit better. She is still off of Chemo for this week. She had her scan this week. Results next week. The other doctor that she had to ask was an ear, nose, and throat doctor to get another opinion regarding the dizziness. That doctor thought she might have had an inner ear infection, but since it was getting better, they were not going to treat it. Next week, more blood work, and back to the Oncologist on Thursday to see when she goes from here.

Thank you for your support ❤

It takes a village! Join the Fight: Help an Incredible Woman Battle Rare Cancer and Stay Afloat During Her Courageous Journey! It is my honor to share my best friend's story with you.

In December of 2023, Lynne was rushed to the hospital with abdominal pain. Once there, she was diagnosed with Appendicitis. The hospital she was taken to didn’t do surgery, so she had to be transferred to another hospital. Once at that hospital, she was rushed into surgery. During the Appendectomy, they found a very rare Cancerous Tumor (Appendicular Cancer). One month later, she had to undergo another surgery to remove part of her colon as a precaution. Then, she was told she was cancer-free.

While recovering from her second surgery, she received a call from an Oncologist. I went with Lynn to that appointment, where she was told that because her cancer was so rare, her case was put in front of a board of oncologists for review. The board recommended that she have further testing, blood work, and a scan. The board recommended that she undergo 6 months of Chemo IV and pill form. She just received a call from a clinic to see another Surgeon. As you can see, this is all unfolding as of this writing.

Lynne lives alone and may be unable to drive to and from appointments. All efforts are being put forth to ensure Lynne’s drugs, supplies, and transportation are covered, but at this time, we are not sure if that is the case.

I have also requested an appointment for Lynne with the Mayo Clinic in the United States. Because Lynne’s cancer is so rare, I believe they will be interested in seeing her.

Today, I am asking you to please donate to this GoFundMe page so that Lynne can spend her time healing and getting stronger instead of worrying about how much money she has left before she is homeless.

I met Lynne approximately around 1989 to 1990. I was working at a company in Etobicoke, ON, and my friend Cindy, the manager, told me she just interviewed a girl she liked. She said I am going to offer her the job. “You are going to love her; she is from Newfoundland.”

Truer words were never spoken. From the day I met Lynne, we became fast friends. She was very kind and had the best sense of humour. Little did we know then where life would take us.

Lynne was born in Grand Falls, Newfoundland. As a young teen girl, Lynne was diagnosed with Scoliosis. This condition caused her to have surgery on her spine to insert rods, and because of that, she spent 1 year in a body cast.

Lynne moved to Ontario in her 20s, where she met her husband at work. They were together for 9 years but married for 6, during which time she had 2 beautiful children, a boy and a girl. After some time, her marriage became very contentious, and Lynne moved out with her children. Lynne sometimes worked 2 jobs as a single mother to support herself and her children.

In her 30s, Lynne had to have an additional surgery on her spine where they had to break her spine in 2 places, and now, she has (she is not sure of the medical terminology), but she calls it Scaffolding in her spine.

With her children grown and moved out, Lynne was working 2 different jobs to pay her mortgage and support herself. She had to quit her job due to Arthritis in her Knees, Hips, and right hand. Lynne’s doctor told her that she needed to have both knees replaced. Because of that this further forced Lynne to quit her job, leading her to file for Disability (ODSP). It was a long process for the Disability to come through, so to keep herself afloat, she had to cash in all of her savings and GICs to pay her mortgage.

When that money was ready to run out, Lynn decided to sell her house in Newfoundland and has been using that money to pay her mortgage and monthly bills. (Her house sold for under $20,000.00) Lynne lives a very modest life, and at this time, she thinks she might have enough money to keep her afloat for another few months, and after that, she doesn’t know what she will do. (That's where we are hoping you will help. Your donation will help with medical supplies, transportation, monthly bills, and whatever else might rain down upon her during this courageous journey!)

While going through all of this, Lynne has managed to be a true and loyal friend to me and many others. Lynne went to Newfoundland to care for her brother when he was diagnosed with Cancer and subsequently passed away. Lynne lives 3 hours away from me, and there have been many times when I have called Lynne for help, and her answer has always been, “I am on my way” because that is the kind of heart she has.

I thank you in advance for your donation. I will continue to update this page as she progresses through this next chapter. Every little bit helps!

Debbie