Support Mike Reynolds' Battle Against Cancer

I am Mike Reynolds and I am fighting Stage 4 Hypopharyngeal cancer. In the fall of 2024 my voice became hoarse. I thought it was a cold or an infection. Since I did not regularly see the doctor, it took a few weeks to get an appointment. Once I was examined, the dr. said I think you have cancer. My wife and I were sent on our way with a print out regarding cancer and little hope. We were sent to an ENT who looked into my throat and said it looks like cancer and did a biopsy of a lymph node in my neck. On Dec.3rd, my son's birthday, we were told that it was Hypopharyngeal cancer. We were referred to a ENT who specializes in the treatment of cancer. After consultation, it was my choice to either have radical surgery that would rob me of the ability to speak or I could do radiation and chemo and see how it went. I did not want to lose my ability to speak so I chose to start with chemo and radiation. As this was near the holidays, it was near impossible to get an appointment to see an oncologist. In just a few weeks while waiting for an appointment, it became harder and harder for me to breathe. I also lost weight since it was hard for me to swallow. It was recommended that I receive a feeding tube since I would be unable to swallow due to the radiation treatments. Since the tumor had grown so much I had to get a tracheotomy first before they placed the feeding tube. I was very sick and did not handle the tube feeding very well. I continued to lose weight and was not doing well. I decided that I needed to have the surgery since it seemed I was either going to lose my voice or lose my life. I had surgery on January 23rd. My voice box, part of my thyroid, hyoid bone, jugular vein and many lymph nodes were removed. The surgeons removed a piece of my thigh muscle as well as a vein to reconstruct my throat. The surgery took 8 hours. I was then placed in ICU where i stayed for 4 days. I was in the hospital from Jan. 23rd to Feb. 2nd. I started Chemo and radiation in March. I had 2 rounds of Chemo and 6 weeks of radiation 5 days a week. I have finished chemo and radiation. I just had a PET scan in July that shows the cancer is not present. While that is great news for us, my wife and I are left with a great deal of medical debt. I was unable to work for several months while recovering and going through treatment. I am continuing to fight because this type of cancer has a high probability of returning. We hate to ask for help but it's has become clear that we will need assistance to help with the cost of this cancer fight. The ongoing effects of chemo and radiation have damaged my hearing and caused cataracts to form. I will need hearing aides and cataract surgery in the near future. The costs keep piling up and we are asking for your help. We truly appreciate any assistance you can give us.