The Tucker-Belt family needs our helping hands

Hi there. For those of you who don't already know me, my name is Stephanie and I'm one of Ed’s sisters, along with Julie & Dana. Like many of you who don't live on San Juan Island, we've been trying to figure out how we can best support Ed and his family during his medical treatment.

Here is Ed’s story:

Ed was diagnosed with Transitional Cell Carcinoma in Oct. 2004. He managed to keep it at a low-grade, type 1 cancer til recently. This July, Ed had to have the cancer-affected kidney removed and during surgery the doctors discovered tumors they were not expecting. His recovery was tough, as some of you know, and thankfully he was able to join Heather in walking their daughter, Nayaleah, down the aisle at her wedding in August to her sweet husband, John.

In late September, Ed had a PET scan that determined a new diagnosis of stage 4 Metastatic Urothelial Carcinoma. This is a very aggressive form of cancer and Ed started chemotherapy treatment the very next day. He’s grateful to be working with an amazing team of doctors and medical professionals in Seattle at Swedish Cancer Institute and is completing his 4th round of chemo this week. After chemo treatment, Ed will have more scans and is expected to receive targeted radiation and Immunotherapy in the coming months.

He and Heather have been traveling back and forth between San Juan Island and Seattle for each treatment which involves a great deal of travel expense and time away from their home and 3 daughters, Nayaleah, Ariana and Phaedra.

What Can You Do To Help?

One of the best ways to help Ed and his family recover from this setback is to alleviate some of the financial burden they are facing. Ed is self-employed as a massage therapist and has been unable to work since July, and Heather has had to take quite a bit of time off work as well, so in the coming months the family will benefit from having as much support as possible.

While there is absolutely no obligation to donate, please know that any amount will be very appreciated. These donations will go directly to the family and will help alleviate some of the financial impact of mounting medical bills and lost income.

We are hoping to have better news to report soon and will update everyone accordingly.

In the meantime, thank you for taking time to learn more about Ed and we hope you will please keep him and his family in your thoughts.