Support Valerie Menjivar's Fight Against Rare Cancer

Hi, my name is Marlin Menjivar. On September 3rd, my wife, Fatima Menjivar, took my daughter, Valerie Menjivar (14 years old), to a routine medical appointment as she was having a lot of pain in her right leg for the last several weeks. My wife requested an X-ray because the pain had gotten worse over the last week. The doctors thought it was a muscle spasm; however, the X-ray was requested. Around 5:30 pm that same day, the doctor called my wife and shared that she and another doctor had reviewed the X-ray and found a mass that appeared abnormal, and they were concerned. We were asked to rush my daughter to the Emergency Children's Hospital OHSU that same night for an MRI. The hospital had already been notified to prioritize my daughter's MRI due to what the other doctors had seen.

On that same night, we were told that the mass was a cancerous tumor, and they were scheduling us with a surgical oncologist right away. We met the surgeon on September 4th, and he confirmed the diagnosis and scheduled an emergency biopsy surgery on September 5th.

After the biopsy surgery, we were given worse news than what we already knew. We were told that the cancer was on the bone of the right femur and was growing into the muscle. In addition, the cancer is one of the rarest cancers there is and requires immediate chemotherapy in the hospital, followed by removal of the femur or amputation and a second round of chemotherapy.

This news has caught us by surprise as Valerie has always been a healthy child, and we feel all this is like a nightmare at the moment, but we know we need to be strong to support her.

As you might be aware, most families like ours are not ready mentally, emotionally, and financially to deal with what is coming to us. The doctors have expressed that the treatment is the most severe and financially devastating.

I'm asking for support from the bottom of my heart to be able to give my daughter Valerie the best fighting chance and also to allow me to not worry about the financial burden that this is bringing.

We are a family of four: my wife, Fatima Menjivar; my oldest daughter, Ashley Menjivar; myself; and Valerie Menjivar. I'm also the only person who works as my wife has dedicated her time to raise our two daughters.

Please find it in your heart to support my family during this most difficult time.

Thank you profoundly for any donations you can provide.

Marlin, Fatima, Ashley, and Valerie Menjivar.