Support Tara's Battle Against Hodgkin's Lymphoma

Hello, my name is Tara. I’m a veteran, a nurse, and a mom to four beautiful children.

In June of this year, I had a routine mammogram that showed an area of concern and was given an ultrasound. During the ultrasound, they discovered several large lymph nodes in my right armpit and did a biopsy. On 7/31/24, I received the news that no one wants to hear... the biopsy came back malignant for lymphoma. I had a PET scan and several more biopsies, including a bone marrow biopsy, and then underwent surgery to remove some lymph nodes. I was then diagnosed with a rare type of Hodgkin’s lymphoma, with only 1 in 830,000 people diagnosed each year.

I have had a few setbacks with my surgery, but I have had my mediport put in, and I will be starting chemotherapy and then possibly radiation afterward. My oncologist doesn’t want me to work during chemo, but that would mean 4-6 months off from work. I have already missed a lot of work at a relatively new job, so I don’t have any PTO left and do not qualify for FMLA. I don’t like to ask for help, and I can usually figure things out for myself, but trying to focus on fighting cancer and getting healthy is hard while also worrying about finances.

I understand times are tough financially for everyone right now, and the holidays are upon us, so if you are unable to donate, thank you for reading my story and please share this if you are able to. Thank you so much, everyone ❤️.