Support for Thiago
Donation protected
About a month ago, Thiago got a relatively routine chest x-ray for a persistent cough and a large mass was seen. After many CT scans, blood tests, diagnostic tests and a biopsy, he’s found out he has cancer.
Thiago has a rare form of cancer known as a Primary Mediastinal Germ Cell Tumour.
What does this mean?
Well, it’s a pretty big tumour (about 12cm x 13cm x 8cm, or about the size of two fists put together) sitting right behind Thiago’s sternum (breastbone), from the top of the heart to the little notch at the base of the neck. It looks like it might have spread to the right lower lung and is irritating the sacs surrounding his heart and lungs causing some pain and a cough. We know from clinical trials of other people with this (and similar cancers), that his best chance of survival was to start chemotherapy urgently before going on to have surgery. He started intensive chemo a few weeks ago at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and just completed his second cycle.
Thiago has been living in Melbourne, Australia for a couple of years undertaking a PhD in Immunology at the University of Melbourne, in an attempt to define processes that could lead to the production of better vaccines. He has no family living here, and is ineligible for Medicare as he is not a citizen or permanent resident. Although he has health insurance provided with his PhD scholarship, there have been significant gap and out-of-pocket expenses associated with his treatment. These include needing to pay for his chemo upfront and his mum travelling over from Brazil (luckily before the travel bans), as well as having to move to a house better suited for them both. There will be more costs to come in future, in particular the major surgery he will need to remove the residual mass. This is a pretty tough time for Thiago, as he continues to get chemotherapy and is very fatigued.
Thiago’s friends and family are asking for your help to support him by reducing some of the stresses he’s going through. We understand people are anxious about COVID-19 and the massive toll it is taking. Thiago feels this anxiety very much. Being a cancer patient and undergoing chemo is harrowing at the best of times, but the COVID-19 crisis adds another layer of stress. There is significant potential for treatment delays and the very real possibility of contracting COVID-19 while undergoing chemo and being immunosuppressed. Although there’s not a lot we can do to make chemo easier, or to reduce the anxiety that comes with a cancer diagnosis, we can make sure he doesn’t have to worry about supporting himself and his mum through this tough time.
The financial goal of this fundraiser currently sits at $6000, the cost paid upfront for Thiago’s chemotherapy. If this goal is reached (and to encourage donations), his friends Sarah, Dominik, Matthias and Stéphane have pledged to shave their heads. This is by no means enough to cover all costs associated with his treatment, but will be revised in future.
This event is organised by his friends and colleagues Yannick, Sarah and Connor. Yannick will be responsible for withdrawing the funds and transferring them to Thiago.
Thiago has a rare form of cancer known as a Primary Mediastinal Germ Cell Tumour.
What does this mean?
Well, it’s a pretty big tumour (about 12cm x 13cm x 8cm, or about the size of two fists put together) sitting right behind Thiago’s sternum (breastbone), from the top of the heart to the little notch at the base of the neck. It looks like it might have spread to the right lower lung and is irritating the sacs surrounding his heart and lungs causing some pain and a cough. We know from clinical trials of other people with this (and similar cancers), that his best chance of survival was to start chemotherapy urgently before going on to have surgery. He started intensive chemo a few weeks ago at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and just completed his second cycle.
Thiago has been living in Melbourne, Australia for a couple of years undertaking a PhD in Immunology at the University of Melbourne, in an attempt to define processes that could lead to the production of better vaccines. He has no family living here, and is ineligible for Medicare as he is not a citizen or permanent resident. Although he has health insurance provided with his PhD scholarship, there have been significant gap and out-of-pocket expenses associated with his treatment. These include needing to pay for his chemo upfront and his mum travelling over from Brazil (luckily before the travel bans), as well as having to move to a house better suited for them both. There will be more costs to come in future, in particular the major surgery he will need to remove the residual mass. This is a pretty tough time for Thiago, as he continues to get chemotherapy and is very fatigued.
Thiago’s friends and family are asking for your help to support him by reducing some of the stresses he’s going through. We understand people are anxious about COVID-19 and the massive toll it is taking. Thiago feels this anxiety very much. Being a cancer patient and undergoing chemo is harrowing at the best of times, but the COVID-19 crisis adds another layer of stress. There is significant potential for treatment delays and the very real possibility of contracting COVID-19 while undergoing chemo and being immunosuppressed. Although there’s not a lot we can do to make chemo easier, or to reduce the anxiety that comes with a cancer diagnosis, we can make sure he doesn’t have to worry about supporting himself and his mum through this tough time.
The financial goal of this fundraiser currently sits at $6000, the cost paid upfront for Thiago’s chemotherapy. If this goal is reached (and to encourage donations), his friends Sarah, Dominik, Matthias and Stéphane have pledged to shave their heads. This is by no means enough to cover all costs associated with his treatment, but will be revised in future.
This event is organised by his friends and colleagues Yannick, Sarah and Connor. Yannick will be responsible for withdrawing the funds and transferring them to Thiago.
Fundraising team (4)
Yannick Alexandre
Organizer
Melbourne VIC
Conor Cusack
Team member
Sarah Sandford
Team member
Thiago Maass Steiner
Team member
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