Rally for RYAN's cancer Recovery
Donation protected
The whole world was turned upside down for the Sakai's when Ryan was diagnosed with colon cancer. The cancer has metastasized to his liver and Ryan will soon begin treatment at an alternative cancer treatment center in Scottsdale, Arizona. The alternative part of his treatment will not be covered by insurance and must be paid for out of pocket which can add up to several hundred thousand dollars. Doctors will aim to treat the root cause of the cancer, so that it will not return.
Since the day we heard about our friend Ryan having cancer, his situation has been weighing heavily on our minds. Calleigh and Ryleigh need their father to be there for the everyday moments as well as the big milestones. They need their dad to walk them down the aisle someday. Cindy needs her husband to do life with her...raise their beautiful girls, support her during the hard times, laugh during the happy moments and just grow old together. There is so much more to live for.
Please help Ryan beat this awful cancer. With the expenses being incurred to help him fight, his family cannot do it alone. Thank you for any help you can provide.
~Kristy and Michelle
Here is Ryan's full story in Cindy's words...
So much has changed since March 7, 2016 when Ryan was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer. Our lives was turned upside down! From surgeries, endless dr. appointments, CT/PET scans, blood tests, hundreds of emails & phone calls & sleepless nights of wondering...
Most of you know that after surgery in HNL, we went to Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA) in PHX for chemotherapy treatment. On our first appt we found out that the cancer metastasized from his colon to his liver, which meant he was stage 3 at diagnosis & now suddenly he was stage 4. We were devastated! We felt God was telling us to choose CTCA & they were great, giving us the flexibility to commute back & forth for treatment for free. We had a lot of medical support having found a place where everything was taken care of under one roof & all of Ryan's dr.'s communicated with each other. We truly felt we'd beat this with the help of CTCA.
Then in July Ryan went to CTCA/PHX for treatment & was told his CEA count (carcinoembryonic antigen test, cancer cell count) went up 10 points & the dr.'s were concerned, so in August he did another CT scan. The results were the tumors were growing, but still stable. The dr.'s felt the chemo was no longer responding to shrink the tumors & they looked into finding him a clinical trial. (Clinical trials are approved once you have failed the standard chemo protocol. Clinical trials are basically experimental chemotherapy). Once again we were devastated!
The dr. told me to start looking for clinical trials on my own because they are thousands of them out there. It takes time to find the right one & after you find the right one, the process long. I immediately started in my search. Through this process, I learned about his tumor mutation & what type of drugs will & will not work. Unfortunately all statistical research said none of the standard chemotherapy for colon cancer would work & the prognosis for survival was poor. Again we were devastated! I felt every time we took two steps forward, we were taken two steps backwards. After being continually denied from one clinical trial to the next, one trial responded with positive hopes. I worked closely with a God sent nurse who walked me through the entire process. The only setback was it was located in Grand Rapids Michigan, but we know we need to try every opportunity that is given to us.
In the meantime, I came across an alternative cancer treatment center, Envita also located in Arizona (Scottsdale). They use conventional (chemo) as well as alternative medicines. Alternative treatments, such as oxygen infused in the blood everyday, vitamin c infused in the blood 2-3 times a week, various different supplements that will detox his liver for 12 weeks & so much more. They will also find out why Ryan got cancer in the first place, were they're underlining viruses that he had, inflammatory issues, etc. If they find the root cause, they will do everything to cure the root cause first, then work on the cancer because if they don't cure the root cause, then the cancer will just come back in another form or location. We recently had an consultation. The dr. feels that the treatment they will give Ryan will give him the best possible survival rate, not just short term, but also long term. We don't ever want the cancer to come back in any other form or location. We finally had some positive news. We praised God. The setback for Envita is Ryan would need to live in Scottsdale for 12 weeks & treatment is 5 days a week. Another huge setback is because they use alternative medicines, it is not covered by medical insurance. You will need to pay out of pocket and when I say out of pocket, we are talking about possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars. I don't know how it will be possible, but I am willing to pay for it for the rest of my life if that what it takes.
Now we were faced to make a decision, do we do the clinical trial or alternative treatments. Both sounded positive. Both would target his tumor mutation, which is the end goal. Both would require Ryan to live away from home, either Grand Rapids or Scottsdale. Grand Rapids would be free because all clinical trials are free & Envita would cost thousands. In the end we decided on Envita & people will think we're crazy, out of our minds crazy, almost stupid crazy! We feel Envita will not only target his mutation & get rid of the cancer in his liver now, but make sure it never comes back in any other form or location ever again. The clinical trial may kill his cancer in this liver now, but almost always cancer will come back in another form or location within a couple of years & we'd be back to square one. Chemotherapy doesn't cure cancer, it may help to prolong life. So Ryan will be relocating to Scottsdale, Arizona starting September 7. He will basically be living on his own. Thank God I have flying benefits, so he can come home on some weekends or the girls & I can visit him. It'll definitely be another journey in our lives.
These next couple of months will truly be a test of our faith, patience & possible financial hardship, but I truly believe with God by our side we will get through all of it & be in remission for many years. We are overwhelming blessed & grateful for all of the prayers, support, kindness & pure goodness from all of our friends & family.
Cindy
Since the day we heard about our friend Ryan having cancer, his situation has been weighing heavily on our minds. Calleigh and Ryleigh need their father to be there for the everyday moments as well as the big milestones. They need their dad to walk them down the aisle someday. Cindy needs her husband to do life with her...raise their beautiful girls, support her during the hard times, laugh during the happy moments and just grow old together. There is so much more to live for.
Please help Ryan beat this awful cancer. With the expenses being incurred to help him fight, his family cannot do it alone. Thank you for any help you can provide.
~Kristy and Michelle
Here is Ryan's full story in Cindy's words...
So much has changed since March 7, 2016 when Ryan was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer. Our lives was turned upside down! From surgeries, endless dr. appointments, CT/PET scans, blood tests, hundreds of emails & phone calls & sleepless nights of wondering...
Most of you know that after surgery in HNL, we went to Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA) in PHX for chemotherapy treatment. On our first appt we found out that the cancer metastasized from his colon to his liver, which meant he was stage 3 at diagnosis & now suddenly he was stage 4. We were devastated! We felt God was telling us to choose CTCA & they were great, giving us the flexibility to commute back & forth for treatment for free. We had a lot of medical support having found a place where everything was taken care of under one roof & all of Ryan's dr.'s communicated with each other. We truly felt we'd beat this with the help of CTCA.
Then in July Ryan went to CTCA/PHX for treatment & was told his CEA count (carcinoembryonic antigen test, cancer cell count) went up 10 points & the dr.'s were concerned, so in August he did another CT scan. The results were the tumors were growing, but still stable. The dr.'s felt the chemo was no longer responding to shrink the tumors & they looked into finding him a clinical trial. (Clinical trials are approved once you have failed the standard chemo protocol. Clinical trials are basically experimental chemotherapy). Once again we were devastated!
The dr. told me to start looking for clinical trials on my own because they are thousands of them out there. It takes time to find the right one & after you find the right one, the process long. I immediately started in my search. Through this process, I learned about his tumor mutation & what type of drugs will & will not work. Unfortunately all statistical research said none of the standard chemotherapy for colon cancer would work & the prognosis for survival was poor. Again we were devastated! I felt every time we took two steps forward, we were taken two steps backwards. After being continually denied from one clinical trial to the next, one trial responded with positive hopes. I worked closely with a God sent nurse who walked me through the entire process. The only setback was it was located in Grand Rapids Michigan, but we know we need to try every opportunity that is given to us.
In the meantime, I came across an alternative cancer treatment center, Envita also located in Arizona (Scottsdale). They use conventional (chemo) as well as alternative medicines. Alternative treatments, such as oxygen infused in the blood everyday, vitamin c infused in the blood 2-3 times a week, various different supplements that will detox his liver for 12 weeks & so much more. They will also find out why Ryan got cancer in the first place, were they're underlining viruses that he had, inflammatory issues, etc. If they find the root cause, they will do everything to cure the root cause first, then work on the cancer because if they don't cure the root cause, then the cancer will just come back in another form or location. We recently had an consultation. The dr. feels that the treatment they will give Ryan will give him the best possible survival rate, not just short term, but also long term. We don't ever want the cancer to come back in any other form or location. We finally had some positive news. We praised God. The setback for Envita is Ryan would need to live in Scottsdale for 12 weeks & treatment is 5 days a week. Another huge setback is because they use alternative medicines, it is not covered by medical insurance. You will need to pay out of pocket and when I say out of pocket, we are talking about possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars. I don't know how it will be possible, but I am willing to pay for it for the rest of my life if that what it takes.
Now we were faced to make a decision, do we do the clinical trial or alternative treatments. Both sounded positive. Both would target his tumor mutation, which is the end goal. Both would require Ryan to live away from home, either Grand Rapids or Scottsdale. Grand Rapids would be free because all clinical trials are free & Envita would cost thousands. In the end we decided on Envita & people will think we're crazy, out of our minds crazy, almost stupid crazy! We feel Envita will not only target his mutation & get rid of the cancer in his liver now, but make sure it never comes back in any other form or location ever again. The clinical trial may kill his cancer in this liver now, but almost always cancer will come back in another form or location within a couple of years & we'd be back to square one. Chemotherapy doesn't cure cancer, it may help to prolong life. So Ryan will be relocating to Scottsdale, Arizona starting September 7. He will basically be living on his own. Thank God I have flying benefits, so he can come home on some weekends or the girls & I can visit him. It'll definitely be another journey in our lives.
These next couple of months will truly be a test of our faith, patience & possible financial hardship, but I truly believe with God by our side we will get through all of it & be in remission for many years. We are overwhelming blessed & grateful for all of the prayers, support, kindness & pure goodness from all of our friends & family.
Cindy
Organizer and beneficiary
Kristy Oshiro
Organizer
Pearl City, HI
Ryan Sakai
Beneficiary
