Tim's Cancer Fight

During a weekend in late August while spending time with family in Chicago, Tim started to feel numbness on his left side and experienced bouts of dizziness. He contacted his primary physician who directed him to go immediately to the Emergency Room. His physician suspected he may be having a heart attack or stroke. After several days of tests and doctoring in the hospital, it was determined that he had a bulging disc in his neck pressing on a nerve that was causing these symptoms. His physician also noticed the left side of Tim's neck looked to be swollen. A CT scan revealed a shadow which was concerning. The physician advised Tim to have an immediate biopsy. He was not expecting to find out that he had cancer. As tests continued, he was eventually diagnosed with Stage 4 Squamous Cell Carcinoma, and we were all devastated by this news. His cancer falls under the category of head and neck, and is located in the lymph nodes on the left side of his neck. The oncologist suspected the cancer was in his tonsils and requested he have them removed, along with a biopsy done of his tonsils, tongue and esophagus. These results indicated that none of these areas were the primary source of where the cancer was stemming from. After the oncologist asked for another biopsy of his throat/tongue which would delay treatment by six weeks, Tim decided he would get a second opinion. While praying for strength, a competent and caring medical team, and a positive outcome, he kept seeing and hearing commercials/testimonials for the Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA). This led Tim to their facility in Zion, IL.  The doctors there repeated many of the same tests plus others. These tests revealed he had several more lymph nodes affected and there were additional spots on his tongue as well as on his chest. They recommended an aggressive seven week course of chemotherapy, hyperthermia therapy and radiation treatments. He will begin this treatment on Monday, December 12 at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA) - the day before his 50th birthday. After seven weeks of treatment, the doctors
will evaluate his condition for the next six weeks to determine whether additional treatment or
surgery is necessary. Tim is strong in his faith, and now feels comfortable with his team of doctors and choice of hospital known for their progressive medical treatments and recovery rate. We are truly grateful for the kindness, caring and prayers from our family and friends. As you can imagine, this has been a very difficult time for our family. Your thoughts and prayers have given us strength, comfort and encouragement as we continue this journey toward Tim’s wellness and recovery. Many of you have helped our family in the most thoughtful and generous ways. Some people have asked how they can help support us during this time. As many of you know, Tim has not been able to work for a couple of months, and we do not anticipate him returning to work far into the new-year as he will undergo an extensive recovery process post treatment. We have been encouraged by family and friends who want to help to set up a Go Fund Me page  for Tim to assist with the medical costs and financial strain on our family. We have provided a link here (https://www.gofundme.com/tims-cancer-fight) to Tim's Go Fund Me page. We appreciate your continued thoughts and prayers which will give Tim and our family strength, comfort and encouragement. "The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, and whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety" (Psalms 18:2).

 The family of Tim Carrier