The Diamond Family and Ocular Melanoma

Wendy is my mother-in-law and is the rock in her family!  Ever since I met her, she has treated me with love and compassion.  As I got to know her better, I realized this is how she approached life, and all whom she met.  She is an amazing mother, wife, and friend, and now she needs our help.  Wendy has been battling a rare eye cancer called choroidal melanoma. The melanoma has now spread to the liver and is in her blood stream. The doctors have no treatment for this rare cancer at this point. Wendy will be seeking treatment at Mayo Clinic to see what other options she may have.  At this time her doctor has noted there may be some trials she can do but that would be further down the road and out of state.

We are asking for your help in raising funds to assist with the upcoming treatments, including lab work, pet scans, X-rays, and other medical bills.  Unfortunately, given this diagnosis and treatment, Wendy is unable to work and the family does not have employer sponsored health insurance.  Wendy is hoping that the funds can help reduce any financial burden on her family.  Wendy has graciously allowed me to share her story, so as to allow people to understand her medical history and understand the importance of yearly eye exams.  Please read below.

This is Wendy's story:

    In December 2000, Wendy had Lasik surgery and was glad to ditch the glasses and contacts and thought "Yay! No more eye exams".  In November of 2015, she made an eye doctor appointment, because she was having trouble seeing everything.  The doctor did a full eye exam including dilating her eyes. He made an appointment for her to see a retina specialist the next day. Wendy noted his concern, and he said she made the right choice to make the eye appointment.  The next day, after a battery of tests, the specialist told her she had a rare form of eye cancer.  In December, Wendy had her first visit with an oncologist.  This form of melanoma is known to spread, especially to the liver.  In February 2016, Wendy underwent two surgeries. The first surgery was to insert a radiation plaque; four days later it was removed.  This was done in hopes of slowing the growth of the tumor.  Family and friends were not allowed to visit as she was radioactive.  Following this, Wendy saw the retina specialist every 6 months.  The radiation and tumor slowly robbed her of vision in her right eye.  It was August of 2017 when Wendy made the decision to have the eye, the tumor and a portion of the optic nerve removed.  In October, she received a prosthetic eye.  She has shared how she relearned basic things like pouring coffee and driving. Wendy had difficulty with peripheral vision and with depth perception.

Now in July of this year, at Wendy's latest oncology visit, she had a CT  followed by an MRI and PET scan.  These tests were followed by a biopsy, and it was discovered the melanoma has metastasized to her liver in multiple lesions and is also in the bloodstream.