Support Shayla's Fight Against Breast Cancer

Please help support our friend, Shayla, as she starts her breast cancer journey.

Three weeks ago, Shayla noticed pain and a large lump in her right breast. Once the doctor saw her, they sent her to Willmar right away where things started moving fast. She underwent a mammogram, ultrasound, and a biopsy. The radiologist came in after imaging and told her the black mass he was seeing was very concerning. The biopsy came back 2 days later showing Shayla has invasive ductal carcinoma. The scans showed she had a large mass, along with 3 small tumors in her armpit. Within a couple of days, Shayla met with the oncologist where they came up with a treatment plan.

Shayla has started chemo and had her first treatment on 10/23. She will go every three weeks for a session of chemo that takes 6 and a half hours to complete. The following day, she will have to go back in for Neulasta, which will help with the nausea and side effects of what the chemo does to her body. After 18 weeks of chemo, she will prepare for a mastectomy—she is unsure at this time if she will do a double or a single. After she heals from surgery, she will start radiation. They are unsure how many rounds of radiation she will need, but the whole journey will take a year.

Shayla also has a secondary disease, adrenal insufficiency. She is on high doses of steroids, and we all know steroids can take a huge toll on our bodies. She has had quite the medical journey and sometimes feels alone since nobody can relate to what she has gone through.

Shayla was working, but she has had to step away from the workforce to put all her energy towards beating this cancer's ass. It is hard for many to keep working while having the anxiety of being diagnosed with cancer, all the appointments that go along with this terrible disease, and not to mention the toll it takes on your body. This does put a financial burden on families given her treatment plan will be about a year. She has the support of her family, but let's all rally to help take some of this financial burden off of their plate so she can focus on recovering. The funds will go towards everyday needs. Corey works two jobs, but has had to take some time away as well to help with Shayla's appointments. They will need to pay for travel expenses for doctor appointments, lodging for these upcoming winter months since they cannot administer her drug locally. Please share this with your friends and family and help support her through her journey.