Jordan's Journey
Donation protected
Jordan Graham was diagnosed on December 15th, 2017 with Stage 4 Lung Cancer, specificially non-small cell adenocarcinoma that has metastasized to her brain. All donations will assist with medical bills, extended hospital stays during treatments, and other expenses. Thank you so much for supporting Jordan and Taylor as they go through this difficult time, please keep them and their families in your thoughts and prayers. Jordan is a fighter and our God is so faithful, thank you thank you thank you for being a part of her army and wrapping her up with love.
Jordan's full story can be found below:
January 7th, 2018
Long and heavy post alert! I have a bit of shocking news to share with you all and I apologize to those of you that I didn’t get to tell in person in advance of this post that are finding out this way.
On Friday, December 15th I was diagnosed with Stage 4 Lung Cancer. I have non-small cell adenocarcinoma that has metastasized to my brain. Needless to say, our world has been completely turned upside down since hearing those words three weeks ago. At the end of November I took myself into urgent care after work one evening just to address a lingering dry cough that I’d been having for a few months. It was nothing crazy and I even apologized for being one of those people who came in for something so little. They did a quick chest X-ray because of how long I’d been coughing and found a large mass in my left lung. The next morning I had a CT scan, and a biopsy a few days later. Preliminary biopsy results confirmed our worst fears and through some help, we got ourselves to MD Anderson for a second opinion as quickly as possible; where after a PETscan, MRI, and their own testing, I was given the official news.
As hard as it is to see positives when faced with something like that, there have already been some victories in this fight! My type of cancer, while extremely rare in someone my age, is among the most common for people like me who have never smoked in their lives, and is often caused by a genetic mutation. They sent off blood work to a specialty lab for testing and we were told that around 60-70% of the time, they are able to identify the problem gene. Two days before Christmas we got our little Christmas miracle in the form of a phone call from my oncologist saying they found it!!! Here’s why that’s such a huge win....that means I can be treated with gene targeted systemic therapy (literally just some pills) as my first option and avoid the big scary chemo for now! Essentially this drug fights and destroys ONLY the bad cells and avoids damaging the good ones. This new drug has had very high efficacy rates and this newest version I will be taking has been able to cross the blood-brain barrier and is even being efficient in treating what’s in the brain unlike its predecessor. I will also be doing a 10 day round of radiation soon to go ahead and take care of the spots in my brain.
The words “Stage 4” have a way of punching you right in the stomach and taking your breath away, but they do NOT carry a death sentence along with them! While it does technically mean there is no cure (yet!), I prefer to consider it a more of a “life sentence” of the c word being an ever present reality. I am incredibly fortunate to be able to call myself a patient at MD Anderson and I have 100% faith that I am being treated by the world’s best and brightest doctors that TRULY care and are passionate about what they do!
While I don’t know what my future holds, I am CONFIDENT in these things
1. I know that God laid this path in front of me for a reason and while I don’t know why, I do know that He is holding my hand and will never let me walk it alone. Our God is a great and powerful healer and I have faith that He will see me through this! If you know me, you know He made me stubborn, hard-headed, and waaay too competitive, and now I know why! I have years of practice preparing me to fight and WIN this battle and I WILL NOT LOSE!!
2. While this is certainly something no one ever wants to face, it forces you to immediately change your prospective on life. I can confidently say I will never take another day for granted and continue to count my blessings and live life with much more gratitude for everything I have been given. I have been blessed with the BEST husband, family, friends, and network that are in my corner fighting and working so hard to make this as easy on me as possible. The amount of love I have in my life has never been more abundant and present and it makes me want to fight even harder!
While 2017 ended with a not so pleasant bang, I am going into 2018 with a fighting spirit and am ready to take on whatever this year throws at me! I plan on doing more of the things I love and spending more time with the people that matter most! I am not sure what trials lie before me but I am confident that I still have a lot of life ahead of me and I will NOT let this disease get the best of me!! I don’t have any profound words to say, I just humbly ask for your prayers for strength, comfort, and healing for not only me but also specifically for Taylor and my family as well. My treatments officially began yesterday and also ask for prayers that it works the way it’s supposed to. I have an awesome army in my corner fighting with me every step of the way to kick cancer’s butt!
Jordan's full story can be found below:
January 7th, 2018
Long and heavy post alert! I have a bit of shocking news to share with you all and I apologize to those of you that I didn’t get to tell in person in advance of this post that are finding out this way.
On Friday, December 15th I was diagnosed with Stage 4 Lung Cancer. I have non-small cell adenocarcinoma that has metastasized to my brain. Needless to say, our world has been completely turned upside down since hearing those words three weeks ago. At the end of November I took myself into urgent care after work one evening just to address a lingering dry cough that I’d been having for a few months. It was nothing crazy and I even apologized for being one of those people who came in for something so little. They did a quick chest X-ray because of how long I’d been coughing and found a large mass in my left lung. The next morning I had a CT scan, and a biopsy a few days later. Preliminary biopsy results confirmed our worst fears and through some help, we got ourselves to MD Anderson for a second opinion as quickly as possible; where after a PETscan, MRI, and their own testing, I was given the official news.
As hard as it is to see positives when faced with something like that, there have already been some victories in this fight! My type of cancer, while extremely rare in someone my age, is among the most common for people like me who have never smoked in their lives, and is often caused by a genetic mutation. They sent off blood work to a specialty lab for testing and we were told that around 60-70% of the time, they are able to identify the problem gene. Two days before Christmas we got our little Christmas miracle in the form of a phone call from my oncologist saying they found it!!! Here’s why that’s such a huge win....that means I can be treated with gene targeted systemic therapy (literally just some pills) as my first option and avoid the big scary chemo for now! Essentially this drug fights and destroys ONLY the bad cells and avoids damaging the good ones. This new drug has had very high efficacy rates and this newest version I will be taking has been able to cross the blood-brain barrier and is even being efficient in treating what’s in the brain unlike its predecessor. I will also be doing a 10 day round of radiation soon to go ahead and take care of the spots in my brain.
The words “Stage 4” have a way of punching you right in the stomach and taking your breath away, but they do NOT carry a death sentence along with them! While it does technically mean there is no cure (yet!), I prefer to consider it a more of a “life sentence” of the c word being an ever present reality. I am incredibly fortunate to be able to call myself a patient at MD Anderson and I have 100% faith that I am being treated by the world’s best and brightest doctors that TRULY care and are passionate about what they do!
While I don’t know what my future holds, I am CONFIDENT in these things
1. I know that God laid this path in front of me for a reason and while I don’t know why, I do know that He is holding my hand and will never let me walk it alone. Our God is a great and powerful healer and I have faith that He will see me through this! If you know me, you know He made me stubborn, hard-headed, and waaay too competitive, and now I know why! I have years of practice preparing me to fight and WIN this battle and I WILL NOT LOSE!!
2. While this is certainly something no one ever wants to face, it forces you to immediately change your prospective on life. I can confidently say I will never take another day for granted and continue to count my blessings and live life with much more gratitude for everything I have been given. I have been blessed with the BEST husband, family, friends, and network that are in my corner fighting and working so hard to make this as easy on me as possible. The amount of love I have in my life has never been more abundant and present and it makes me want to fight even harder!
While 2017 ended with a not so pleasant bang, I am going into 2018 with a fighting spirit and am ready to take on whatever this year throws at me! I plan on doing more of the things I love and spending more time with the people that matter most! I am not sure what trials lie before me but I am confident that I still have a lot of life ahead of me and I will NOT let this disease get the best of me!! I don’t have any profound words to say, I just humbly ask for your prayers for strength, comfort, and healing for not only me but also specifically for Taylor and my family as well. My treatments officially began yesterday and also ask for prayers that it works the way it’s supposed to. I have an awesome army in my corner fighting with me every step of the way to kick cancer’s butt!
Organizer and beneficiary
Synergy Laboratories
Organizer
Mobile, AL
Jordan Graham
Beneficiary
