John's Cancer Treatment Fund
Donation protected
As some of you already know, John was diagnosed with testicular cancer on July 29, 2016. It all began on July 21, 2016, which was just a regular Thursday night. While in the shower, John found a small, painless lump on his testicle and [thankfully] decided to go to the doctor to get it checked. The physician decided to send John for an ultrasound as a precautionary measure and the reports came back stating the mass was consistent with testicular cancer.
Within days we went for blood work, CT scans and had an appointment with a urologist. The urologist confirmed that the size and shape of the mass was consistent with testicular cancer and explained that the only option was to perform an inguinal orchiectomy, which is a surgical procedure to remove the affected testicle. This is done by making an incision in the groin, removing the testicle as well as the entire spermatic chord and sending it out for biopsy.
John’s surgery was successfully completed on August 11, 2016. The pathology reports came back showing it was a non-seminoma malignant tumor. This is a germ cell tumor that typically occurs in men between their late teens and early 30’s. It is an aggressive form of cancer that consists of 4 main types of tumors: Embryonal carcinoma, Yolk sac carcinoma, Choriocarcinoma, Teratoma. In some cases, this would be the extent of treatment as long as there isn’t any spread.
With high hopes that this would be the case for John, we received the heartbreaking news that the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes in the abdomen. He will have to undergo 4 rounds of chemotherapy over the course of the next 3-4 months. We are anticipating a start date of Monday, September 19th. The oncologist explained that there is still a 60% chance that once the chemotherapy is complete, John will need surgery to remove the affected lymph nodes in the abdomen if the chemo doesn't successfully remove the cancer. One of the many potential negative side effects is infertility. As a result, the doctor is sending John to a sperm bank, which is one of the costs not covered by the insurance company. That being said, the medical bills have already started coming in something fierce.
Sometimes we have to reach out and ask for help and that’s what we’re doing today. Any and all donations, which would be used to cover the costs of treatment and medical bills, would be appreciated beyond words. And if you’re unable to, we completely understand, and only ask that you share John’s story so that we can raise awareness and hopefully help others along the way.
Follow John's Journey on Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLu5wcnMwolj3SVq8IHPcivKijBxBPpfPq
Within days we went for blood work, CT scans and had an appointment with a urologist. The urologist confirmed that the size and shape of the mass was consistent with testicular cancer and explained that the only option was to perform an inguinal orchiectomy, which is a surgical procedure to remove the affected testicle. This is done by making an incision in the groin, removing the testicle as well as the entire spermatic chord and sending it out for biopsy.
John’s surgery was successfully completed on August 11, 2016. The pathology reports came back showing it was a non-seminoma malignant tumor. This is a germ cell tumor that typically occurs in men between their late teens and early 30’s. It is an aggressive form of cancer that consists of 4 main types of tumors: Embryonal carcinoma, Yolk sac carcinoma, Choriocarcinoma, Teratoma. In some cases, this would be the extent of treatment as long as there isn’t any spread.
With high hopes that this would be the case for John, we received the heartbreaking news that the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes in the abdomen. He will have to undergo 4 rounds of chemotherapy over the course of the next 3-4 months. We are anticipating a start date of Monday, September 19th. The oncologist explained that there is still a 60% chance that once the chemotherapy is complete, John will need surgery to remove the affected lymph nodes in the abdomen if the chemo doesn't successfully remove the cancer. One of the many potential negative side effects is infertility. As a result, the doctor is sending John to a sperm bank, which is one of the costs not covered by the insurance company. That being said, the medical bills have already started coming in something fierce.
Sometimes we have to reach out and ask for help and that’s what we’re doing today. Any and all donations, which would be used to cover the costs of treatment and medical bills, would be appreciated beyond words. And if you’re unable to, we completely understand, and only ask that you share John’s story so that we can raise awareness and hopefully help others along the way.
Follow John's Journey on Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLu5wcnMwolj3SVq8IHPcivKijBxBPpfPq
Organizer
Rosanna Arena Karen
Organizer
New York, NY
