Support Sophia's Sarcoma Survival

Hi, my name is Sophia! I'm fundraising because I have several debilitating illnesses, the main one being a very rare form of cancer- "caval" leiomyosarcoma. I've had extreme fatigue and pain for years, but doctors didn't take me seriously because I was only 17. Two months before my 21st birthday, I got my cancer diagnosis.

I am undergoing chemotherapy now and will begin radiation treatments soon. It has been difficult finding a doctor to handle my care and respect my conscientious healthcare decisions. My surgeon says he thinks he can remove my tumor (10cm x 4cm or half the size of a woman's fist) from my inferior vena cava and aorta. He also has to take my right kidney but hopes to save my left. Fortunately, the cancer hasn't metastasized. I also have intracranial hypertension, so I make too much brain fluid, which puts pressure on my brain, leading to motor control issues, migraines, and possible blindness.

I try to stay positive despite these trials. I just need a little help because my family and I are struggling with illness, disability and economic disadvantage. We're poor. I need help paying for transportation - getting the car fixed, inspected (road legal), and paying for gas to and from treatments. Radiation treatments are over an hour away each way. I'm 21, and in NC that means when the COVID 19 special exceptions end, so does my Medicaid coverage. (It could end because you help me by donating, I'm afraid.) Soon I may be running up bills for treatments to stay alive. If the vascular surgeon I'm to meet on May 24th can't help me, I will have to look for treatment at UPMC in Pittsburgh or Englewood Hospital in New Jersey. They are both reviewing my case. I need funds to pay for quality of life improvements also, like fixing the roof that leaks or replacing the furnace so my family can stay warm in the winter or getting a new well pump so we have running water. All we have are small space heaters that are unaffordable & kerosene heaters that can't be used when we sleep. We're getting water from the pumps at the local park.

I just want to get better, be a normal 21-year-old, go to college maybe or continue with my art. I want to make art that brings beauty, joy and positivity to others. I want to live small, and as sustainably as possible to keep my impact on the earth minimal. I want to help others find peace and contentment. I just need a little help to get there. Please. Thank you so much for reading my story and considering donating.