Kicking Thyroid Cancer's Butt!
Donation protected
Hello world! My name is Dayne (they/them) and I'm a 21-year-old trans person, aspiring rabbi, and I don't have a thyroid anymore! When I started seeing my endocrinologist for HRT, she noticed a lump in my neck that turned out to be a fast-growing and malignant thyroid tumor. This past month, I underwent a series of two surgeries over the course of a week to remove the mass and the rest of my thyroid with it. For the two and half weeks following my first surgery, I couldn't work and -- despite having medical insurance -- it ended up costing about $2500 per surgery (more than twice the amount I make every month at my current full-time job).
Even if I clean out my bank account and all of my savings, I still won't have enough to cover just one of my surgeries (including physician's and hospital fees). Even if I spend every penny of every paycheck for the next 4 months paying these medical bills, I will still be in debt. I already spend more than half of my paycheck on rent in addition to exorbitant student loan payments, utilities, work transportation, groceries, and other medical costs (daily medications, lab fees, scans, doctor's visit copays, etc).
This fund would mean the world to me. It would mean not laying awake at night in a panic about how I'm going to stay afloat, not feeling like I'm drowning in hopelessness anymore. The stress of my financial predicament is so consuming that it's been too hard to focus on healing and listen to my body and its new needs/way of being.
But through the physical pain, financial anxiety, and fear that this isn't the end of the road for cancer quite yet, I've found grounding and solace in being able to be open and honest about my diagnosis as well as smile at the joy, love, and support I have in my life. I have faith that everything will be okay in the end (and if it isn't, that will be okay, too). Thank you so much for your help in kicking thyroid cancer's butt and keeping me above water so that this isn't the end of my story. There's so much work left to be done in this world and I feel blessed to be able to continue doing it.
If you'd like to contribute outside of money, PLEASE donate blood and register to be an organ donor. Having cancer automatically disqualifies me from being an organ donor or ever donating blood again, something I have been doing every 8 weeks since I was 16. Only 5% of Americans donate blood regularly! Every pint of blood can go towards saving up to 3 people!
And if you would prefer to donate directly, you can venmo me @daynesamuels
Even if I clean out my bank account and all of my savings, I still won't have enough to cover just one of my surgeries (including physician's and hospital fees). Even if I spend every penny of every paycheck for the next 4 months paying these medical bills, I will still be in debt. I already spend more than half of my paycheck on rent in addition to exorbitant student loan payments, utilities, work transportation, groceries, and other medical costs (daily medications, lab fees, scans, doctor's visit copays, etc).
This fund would mean the world to me. It would mean not laying awake at night in a panic about how I'm going to stay afloat, not feeling like I'm drowning in hopelessness anymore. The stress of my financial predicament is so consuming that it's been too hard to focus on healing and listen to my body and its new needs/way of being.
But through the physical pain, financial anxiety, and fear that this isn't the end of the road for cancer quite yet, I've found grounding and solace in being able to be open and honest about my diagnosis as well as smile at the joy, love, and support I have in my life. I have faith that everything will be okay in the end (and if it isn't, that will be okay, too). Thank you so much for your help in kicking thyroid cancer's butt and keeping me above water so that this isn't the end of my story. There's so much work left to be done in this world and I feel blessed to be able to continue doing it.
If you'd like to contribute outside of money, PLEASE donate blood and register to be an organ donor. Having cancer automatically disqualifies me from being an organ donor or ever donating blood again, something I have been doing every 8 weeks since I was 16. Only 5% of Americans donate blood regularly! Every pint of blood can go towards saving up to 3 people!
And if you would prefer to donate directly, you can venmo me @daynesamuels
Organizer
Dayne Samuels
Organizer
Los Angeles, CA
