Last June, my mom called me to tell me that her routine hysterectomy had revelaed a large malignant tumor.  And this wasn't a run of the mill tumor, it was Leiomyosarcoma.  A rare, aggressive cancer that is resiatnt to chemo and other treatments and has a very high rate of recurrence.  It's difficult to absorb that kind of life altering information.  In times like these, the ONLY comfort is knowing God is for us.  He has promised us He will never leave us, and for the past 8 months, through doctor visit after doctor visit, insurance nightmares, chemo, hair loss and physical pain my mom has clung to that fact.  Our whole family has.   

 These tumors are very hard to find as they are mistaken for benign fibroids in the uterus.  If they are found, they are found during a hysterectomy.  Leiomyosarcoma is an extrememly rare sarcoma that occurs in only in about 6 out of every 1,000,000 women, and as such there are few doctors who understand it well enough to treat it. 

Right now, she is (NED) which means no evidence of disease.  The hysterectomy removed all of the tumor and her CT scan showed no cancer.    PRAISE GOD!!! In hopes of staying NED, adjunct (or preventative) treatment and/or close monitoring from a sarcoma specialist is necessary.  She just received her last chemo treatment in February and is now recovering.

Because no sarcoma specialist would take her insurance, she was forced to see a reglular oncologist who has refused to test the tumor for estrogen receptors.  Although not much research has been done, testing these tumors for estrogen receptors is basic.  If her tumor does have them, and she is not put on medications to inhibit estrogen production in the body, the chance of recurrence greatly increases.  Given that the rate of recurrence  is already high, it is important that this test be done.   If she can find a doctor who will order it, she will likely have to pay for that testing out of pocket.  

We have encountered throughout this process that the insurance issue is costing my mom expedient, expert treatment for this rare cancer.

She would never ask for it, but she needs financial help to at the very least get this tumor tested and find a sarcoma specialist to follow her treatment for the next five years.  When your life and health are at stake, to be faced with denial of treatmet because of insurance is beyond scary.  

Additionally, she will have been out of work for at least a year before she is healthy enough to go back.  This lack of income has not been easy.  It's an added stress that someone dealing with health scares shouldn't have to deal with.  Anyone who knows her, knows my mother is the least materialistic a person can be.  She is constantly trying to give me her things if I show the slightest liking! She has sacrificed her own needs and shown such bravery to help the helpless, to show compassion, to just be a wonderful human being.  I would love nothing more than to elimnate this stress for her.  

So many people have prayed for my mom and encouraged her through this, and if you'd like to help in this way, please consider donating to help my mom get the treatment she needs to stay cancer free.  It will be a long road for the next five years, but with help, my hope is that this money will get her excellent treatment and lower stress so she can spend all her energy staying healthy and fighting this "Purple Dragon" as it's called in the sarcoma circles.

Thank you, thank you, thank you and may God bless each and every one of you beyond what you can contain for your kindness!