Help Patrice Fight Stage 3 Cancer
Donation protected
For my sister Patrice cancer has taken hold more than once and although it has been and will continue to be treatable she has been diagnosed with cancer again.
In 2010 Patrice had her first screening mammogram and was diagnosed with Stage 0 breast cancer. In February of this year after her first colonoscopy she was diagnosed with Stage 3 colorectal cancer. The breast cancer was caught very early and she did not have to undergo chemo and radiation but did go through the long and painful process of a double mastectomy and reconstruction.
This time she was not so lucky. The tumor they found was fairly large and appeared to have spread to several lymph nodes. She underwent 5 weeks of incredibly painful radiation and chemo. The tumor has shrunk significantly but on July 23rd she will undergo a major 5 hour surgery, followed by almost a week in the hospital. They will remove what remains of the tumor and nearby lymph nodes. Thankfully the cancer has not spread and the prognosis is good but the treatment has been difficult with more to come.
She has already been through one minor surgery to insert a port, several biopsies, CT scans, ultrasounds, and an unexpected emergency 5 day stay in the hospital due to complications from the chemo and radiation. She still faces several more surgeries and 5 more weeks of chemo along with genetic testing. This all comes at an enormous cost.
Even though my sister has private medical insurance her deductible and out of pocket expenses for these treatments will exceed $7000. She was denied short-term disability because of a pre-existing condition and her employer offers no sick time as she is a contractor. She has had to use all of her vacation time and work from home on days she could barely get out of bed because she couldn’t afford to be off work.
My sister never asks for help from anyone, she’s an incredible single mom and my hero. She is truly one of the strongest people I know. She has not even shared this news with many people as she is afraid to even say the “C” word and just wants to put this behind her. No one deserves to get cancer even once let alone twice! Asking for help is not in her vocabulary but this time she does not have a choice. Patrice’s focus should be on getting well and healing her body instead of these financial burdens which weigh heavily on her mind and spirit.
Anything you can do to help would be amazing and we also wants to spread awareness to please get your colonoscopy as soon as you are able as it could save your life!
Thank you all so much,
Alicia Apostol
In 2010 Patrice had her first screening mammogram and was diagnosed with Stage 0 breast cancer. In February of this year after her first colonoscopy she was diagnosed with Stage 3 colorectal cancer. The breast cancer was caught very early and she did not have to undergo chemo and radiation but did go through the long and painful process of a double mastectomy and reconstruction.
This time she was not so lucky. The tumor they found was fairly large and appeared to have spread to several lymph nodes. She underwent 5 weeks of incredibly painful radiation and chemo. The tumor has shrunk significantly but on July 23rd she will undergo a major 5 hour surgery, followed by almost a week in the hospital. They will remove what remains of the tumor and nearby lymph nodes. Thankfully the cancer has not spread and the prognosis is good but the treatment has been difficult with more to come.
She has already been through one minor surgery to insert a port, several biopsies, CT scans, ultrasounds, and an unexpected emergency 5 day stay in the hospital due to complications from the chemo and radiation. She still faces several more surgeries and 5 more weeks of chemo along with genetic testing. This all comes at an enormous cost.
Even though my sister has private medical insurance her deductible and out of pocket expenses for these treatments will exceed $7000. She was denied short-term disability because of a pre-existing condition and her employer offers no sick time as she is a contractor. She has had to use all of her vacation time and work from home on days she could barely get out of bed because she couldn’t afford to be off work.
My sister never asks for help from anyone, she’s an incredible single mom and my hero. She is truly one of the strongest people I know. She has not even shared this news with many people as she is afraid to even say the “C” word and just wants to put this behind her. No one deserves to get cancer even once let alone twice! Asking for help is not in her vocabulary but this time she does not have a choice. Patrice’s focus should be on getting well and healing her body instead of these financial burdens which weigh heavily on her mind and spirit.
Anything you can do to help would be amazing and we also wants to spread awareness to please get your colonoscopy as soon as you are able as it could save your life!
Thank you all so much,
Alicia Apostol
Organizer and beneficiary
Alicia Apostol
Organizer
Royal Oak, MI
Patrice Apostol
Beneficiary
