Help Allison Survive Breast Cancer 2.0
Donation protected
Dear friends,
Eleven years ago, last week, my beautiful wife Allison (née Brown) gave birth to our youngest son, Asher.
Less than a year later, while she was still breast-feeding, she was diagnosed with Breast Cancer.
She had recently started her own small business. She had no time.
It was devastating.
Following major surgery (a lumpectomy), months of radiation therapy each day and years of hormone therapy (Tamoxifen), she survived...and went on to thrive.
This year, 2019, we were starting to enjoy life, hoping to celebrate ten years of being cancer-free... we thought we were out of the woods. Finally.
But then two weeks ago, that all changed.
She went in for her bi-annual mammogram. What should have taken 15 mins took 90.
As soon as she left the facility, she received a call from her GP. She needed to see her urgently, the next day.
The mammogram had detected a new growth, the size of a grain of rice, growing near her chest wall.
She was devastated.
Our two boys were scared. They thought Mum might die.
There were lots of tears that weekend.
Within 24 hours she was in seeing a private surgeon. He spoke like he was a tradie or a butcher cutting up bits of meat. Breasts were going to be whipped off.
She was in utter shock. She hadn’t even had a diagnosis confirmed.
A few days later, a biopsy confirmed our worst fears. It was cancer.
Despite all this, however, we now feel truly blessed this time around.
We are never alone. We have Jesus as the cornerstone of our marriage, of Allison’s life and mine.
We know we are safe and eternally secure in the loving arms of God. Whatever happens, even if things don’t turn out well, we know we are in his hands ... we can trust him.
We have been surrounded by supportive family, understanding employers, loving generous church-family and amazing dear friends.
With the help of a new, kind and supportive breast cancer surgeon, Mr Su-wen Loh, we are feeling much more at ease and at peace, compared to last time.
We know we will be ok and hopefully make it through together.
However, it is not the cancer itself, nor the mastectomy required nor the ongoing hormonal treatment that has caused my darling wife the most stress and kept her awake at night.
It is the extraordinary costs involved.
Last week, 3 tests alone left us close to $1000 out of pocket and this is week 1. This week, a second procedure tomorrow will be close to another thousand out of pocket.
Last time round, ten years ago, even though we had private health insurance with extras, we were left close to $12,000 out of pocket, which we certainly couldn’t afford then and cannot afford now.
In fact, it would sink us.
We have elected to go through the Olivia Newton John Cancer Centre at the Austin Hospital, which is fine ... it just means we will have to take a ticket and wait in a queue a few more weeks or months, rather than being rushed to the head of the private queue.
However, we are already living with a load of credit card debt because I was out of work for several months last year and we cannot afford to be thousands or tens of thousands of dollars out of pocket this time around.
It can be really hard and humbling as a man to ask for help, particularly around finances. But I need your help to lower the pressure on my wife, to ease the financial burden and reduce the stress on her of money, of not having enough to go through proper treatment, even to take it off her shoulders, so she can focus on her health while we are getting through this together.
Please don't feel any sense of duty or obligation to contribute or guilt if you cannot.
However, if you are able to pitch in, we would be forever grateful.
Many people think we are a ‘religious’ family. Strange as it might seem, I don’t think we are but we do have a strong faith and relationship with Christ which motivates and guides our decisions and gives us a firm foundation.
Many have asked us how or why we can afford to be so vulnerable and open with our lives around health and finances. I guess because of our faith in Jesus, we know we are secure, so have nothing to hide. After all, we follow the one who told those who choose to follow him to live together, not only as brothers and sisters but to work together and support one another like members of (his) one body!
This wasn’t always the case. I only returned to a personal faith in 2001 and Allison became a Christian for the first time later that year, 6 months before we were married. I won’t say too much about this here, other than the change was real, it was like the lights came on, we were blind, but now we see.
Most of us, brought up in middle class Australia, are taught from an early age to be ‘self-sufficient’, to appear like we’ve got it all together when we’re in public, at work or school and to never be too vulnerable – to keep anything we’re struggling with close to our chest, ‘private and confidential.’
Of course ‘no man is an island’, we were meant for more and designed to live in community - not as individuals nor individual families.
Also, if you’ve tried (and we have), it is not a very fulfilling way to live.
Not if but when we are struggling, it leads to isolation, loneliness and often despair, because we can’t be ‘real’ with those around us.
We believe in someone who presented a better way to live. I want my life and my family’s lives to be different, to show our values in the way we live and model what it means to live as ‘one body’, i.e. real community.
So anyway, if you’re happy to help Allison, to pitch in and support her at this time of need, please do.
kind regards
Dean Troth
Husband - Father
P.S. Al has lots going on right now. Please understand that she is not taking many calls but is receiving SMSs.
P.P.S. If you want to find out more about this community/Jesus stuff, please ask.
Eleven years ago, last week, my beautiful wife Allison (née Brown) gave birth to our youngest son, Asher.
Less than a year later, while she was still breast-feeding, she was diagnosed with Breast Cancer.
She had recently started her own small business. She had no time.
It was devastating.
Following major surgery (a lumpectomy), months of radiation therapy each day and years of hormone therapy (Tamoxifen), she survived...and went on to thrive.
This year, 2019, we were starting to enjoy life, hoping to celebrate ten years of being cancer-free... we thought we were out of the woods. Finally.
But then two weeks ago, that all changed.
She went in for her bi-annual mammogram. What should have taken 15 mins took 90.
As soon as she left the facility, she received a call from her GP. She needed to see her urgently, the next day.
The mammogram had detected a new growth, the size of a grain of rice, growing near her chest wall.
She was devastated.
Our two boys were scared. They thought Mum might die.
There were lots of tears that weekend.
Within 24 hours she was in seeing a private surgeon. He spoke like he was a tradie or a butcher cutting up bits of meat. Breasts were going to be whipped off.
She was in utter shock. She hadn’t even had a diagnosis confirmed.
A few days later, a biopsy confirmed our worst fears. It was cancer.
Despite all this, however, we now feel truly blessed this time around.
We are never alone. We have Jesus as the cornerstone of our marriage, of Allison’s life and mine.
We know we are safe and eternally secure in the loving arms of God. Whatever happens, even if things don’t turn out well, we know we are in his hands ... we can trust him.
We have been surrounded by supportive family, understanding employers, loving generous church-family and amazing dear friends.
With the help of a new, kind and supportive breast cancer surgeon, Mr Su-wen Loh, we are feeling much more at ease and at peace, compared to last time.
We know we will be ok and hopefully make it through together.
However, it is not the cancer itself, nor the mastectomy required nor the ongoing hormonal treatment that has caused my darling wife the most stress and kept her awake at night.
It is the extraordinary costs involved.
Last week, 3 tests alone left us close to $1000 out of pocket and this is week 1. This week, a second procedure tomorrow will be close to another thousand out of pocket.
Last time round, ten years ago, even though we had private health insurance with extras, we were left close to $12,000 out of pocket, which we certainly couldn’t afford then and cannot afford now.
In fact, it would sink us.
We have elected to go through the Olivia Newton John Cancer Centre at the Austin Hospital, which is fine ... it just means we will have to take a ticket and wait in a queue a few more weeks or months, rather than being rushed to the head of the private queue.
However, we are already living with a load of credit card debt because I was out of work for several months last year and we cannot afford to be thousands or tens of thousands of dollars out of pocket this time around.
It can be really hard and humbling as a man to ask for help, particularly around finances. But I need your help to lower the pressure on my wife, to ease the financial burden and reduce the stress on her of money, of not having enough to go through proper treatment, even to take it off her shoulders, so she can focus on her health while we are getting through this together.
Please don't feel any sense of duty or obligation to contribute or guilt if you cannot.
However, if you are able to pitch in, we would be forever grateful.
Many people think we are a ‘religious’ family. Strange as it might seem, I don’t think we are but we do have a strong faith and relationship with Christ which motivates and guides our decisions and gives us a firm foundation.
Many have asked us how or why we can afford to be so vulnerable and open with our lives around health and finances. I guess because of our faith in Jesus, we know we are secure, so have nothing to hide. After all, we follow the one who told those who choose to follow him to live together, not only as brothers and sisters but to work together and support one another like members of (his) one body!
This wasn’t always the case. I only returned to a personal faith in 2001 and Allison became a Christian for the first time later that year, 6 months before we were married. I won’t say too much about this here, other than the change was real, it was like the lights came on, we were blind, but now we see.
Most of us, brought up in middle class Australia, are taught from an early age to be ‘self-sufficient’, to appear like we’ve got it all together when we’re in public, at work or school and to never be too vulnerable – to keep anything we’re struggling with close to our chest, ‘private and confidential.’
Of course ‘no man is an island’, we were meant for more and designed to live in community - not as individuals nor individual families.
Also, if you’ve tried (and we have), it is not a very fulfilling way to live.
Not if but when we are struggling, it leads to isolation, loneliness and often despair, because we can’t be ‘real’ with those around us.
We believe in someone who presented a better way to live. I want my life and my family’s lives to be different, to show our values in the way we live and model what it means to live as ‘one body’, i.e. real community.
So anyway, if you’re happy to help Allison, to pitch in and support her at this time of need, please do.
kind regards
Dean Troth
Husband - Father
P.S. Al has lots going on right now. Please understand that she is not taking many calls but is receiving SMSs.
P.P.S. If you want to find out more about this community/Jesus stuff, please ask.
Organizer
Dean Troth
Organizer
Donvale VIC
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