Clayton Needs Surgery!

Hi! My name is Clayton. I'm a nurse, nursing instructor, and grad student working towards my master's of nursing here in Southwestern Pennsylvania. I love spending time outdoors hiking or kayaking many of the beautiful parks around the country, playing guitar, writing stories and poetry, and playing games of every sort with friends!

I'm looking to raise money as I am dealing with a medical condition, a rare type of tumor called an ameloblastoma that sits between my left eye and my jaw. The tumor was first discovered in 2013, where it was removed surgically in a fairly simple procedure. At that time we didn't know what it was, but thought it was a simple dental tumor. Testing after the surgery showed it to be this rare tumor, and very likely to return. Fast forward to April 2022 and I notice a bulge on my face. A quick trip to the oral surgeon showed what I feared: the tumor had returned. The tumor itself is a fast growing, but 'benign' tumor, which is to say that it isn't cancerous but it is rapidly filling my sinus and approaching my eye.

To properly remove the tumor this time the doctors need to remove the bone around it, taking most of the upper half of my jaw and most of my upper teeth with it. They then want to surgically reconstruct the bone by taking part of my fibula - that's the small bone in the lower half of the leg - and placing dental implants into it. I'll have to spend a week in the hospital, with the first two days in the ICU with a feeding tube in my nose and a tracheostomy (hole) in my throat so I can breathe with all the swelling. After a few months I should then be able to get teeth for the dental implants, restoring my jaw the rest of the way.

I'm scheduled for surgery this upcoming April in 2023.

This is going to be very expensive, unfortunately. To even have the surgery done I need to pay for the dental implants in full on the day of the procedure. I'm asking for help to make this initial payment and to lessen the financial strain caused by being out of work for a while as I also have increasing medical bills just from the workup to get ready for surgery. Anything you can do to help is very much appreciated. Any dollar amount raised above this will go towards charity to help other people cover medical expenses. Thank you!