As many of you know, my mom has been battling stage 3b non-small cell lung cancer for over 5 years now. She has gone through multiple rounds of chemotherapy and radiation, which, after a few years of tests, treatment, hospital stays, and being so terribly sick, they were able to keep her lung cancer stable to the point where she was able to gain a little more energy and enjoy a few special memories with us. In 2023, my little brother passed away unexpectedly, which caused a major downfall in our mental health as a whole. As a family, my brother, my husband, and our children were able to bring my mom down to Tennessee with some of John's ashes and share very special moments together in the state that my brother and I were born in and where my dad is buried. Doctor check-ups were few and far between from 2023 to this year, with a few minor hospital stays along the way.

Fast forward to March of this year, my mom was having a hard time swallowing, to which a scan followed by a biopsy was completed that revealed small cell carcinoma of the epiglottis. She was so strong, as always, and decided to fight this head-on, which consisted of more chemotherapy and more radiation. The radiation took a major toll on her body overall and caused her to lose the ability to swallow food/most liquids and her medication, so a G-tube was placed to help us make sure she was able to still get her nutrition in some way. In July of this year, a scan was completed that showed ZERO signs of cancer in her throat, and the rest of her neck, chest, and pelvic area were clear as well. This was an absolute miracle in our eyes, and we are incredibly grateful to still have her at this time.

Fast forward to Monday, December 15th, 2025. The day started as a normal day where I fed her and gave her medications. She mentioned having a strange tick in her left arm, which she mentioned just started and had gone away. I told her to let me know if this continued in case we needed to have it looked at to see what would cause this. A little while after 4 pm on Monday, she had been playing normally with my 4-year-old and then planned to lay down and relax as it was probably nap time for her. Fifteen minutes later, my brother and husband heard a few loud bangs, in which they both rushed in and found my mom having a seizure on her floor. (She has had seizure-like activity on three other occasions, all of which doctors advised that without it being an active seizure, they were unable to tell if she was having seizures.) After noticing the seizure, my husband called for me, as I was working from home in another room, and I ran over to help her and try to help her once she became alert again and noticed she was bleeding heavily from her mouth. She was rushed to the emergency room, and X-rays/tests were completed where they found no broken bones, but she had hit her head on her nightstand during the seizure, causing a lot of bruising and a wound on her head. Still, all scans at this point came back clear.

The ER doctor advised that he would like to keep her for observation because, with this now being the 4th and most severe seizure for her, they needed to find out what was causing this and what the next steps should be. A neurologist was assigned to her case, and an MRI was completed. What they found was shocking: they found 6 lesions on her brain. They then informed us that they believe she has been having mini-strokes for months. They also advised us of a lesion that, with contrast, was highlighted and showed metastatic (spread of cancer). They advised that if it was only in this one area of her brain, they could schedule radiation and keep it at bay, but they needed to know if cancer was active anywhere else in her body. CT scans were completed, and they found metastatic cancer in her other lung, active cancer in her primary lung, a buildup of fluid around her heart, multiple masses in her heart that are putting pressure on her heart, as well as a 22mm tumor on her bladder.

She was given two options: AGGRESSIVE treatment with the hope of giving us a few more months or to enter into hospice. After a long, difficult conversation, my mom made it clear that she was so tired of fighting continuously and being in severe pain each and every day.

Yesterday, she was discharged from the hospital and came home, to which hospice has now been started to make her comfortable and hopefully be able to enjoy the time that we all have together. Without treatment, we are looking at anywhere from 3 weeks to 6 months left with her. With cancer spreading to multiple organs/areas of her body, the odds lean heavily towards sooner rather than later. The hospice team is working closely to monitor her with the help of my brother and me. We are truly hoping for a miracle but are now facing the very real and devastating reality that we are on borrowed time at this point.

With this being said, I was advised that I need to figure out after-life services for my mom. I will need to find a funeral home to work with. I am still currently working but am in the process of requesting a leave of absence to be present and focused on what actually matters during this time.

If you cannot afford to assist financially, I completely understand, but if you would please help share this to help us potentially gain support during this time. I have researched a bit on the costs of cremation, delivery, and additional costs related to this process, and it is not something that my brother and I can afford at this time. I am starting to genuinely panic with having to handle everything going on while also being a full-time mom and maintaining my mental health as well as my brother's and my mom's. My husband is willing to help as much as possible as well, but with me needing time off work (unpaid), he is already taking on so much responsibility as we are going from two incomes to one during this time.

Anything that is received will be used towards end-of-life expenses, including funeral/cremation costs and household bills that will continue to pile up as we navigate this extremely difficult time in our lives.