Dear friends, family, and kind-hearted supporters, Part of me cannot believe I am even here writing this & doesn't even know where to begin so let's start from the beginning. In September of 2024, my remarkable mother Rita was diagnosed with Stage 3 Pancreatic Cancer. This diagnosis came to us as a complete shock. It was picked up on imaging by accident and within a few short weeks of diagnosis, my mom endured surgery to remove the majority of her pancreas & her entire spleen. Afterward, we were advised to continue with chemotherapy. Upon meeting with the oncologists at NYU Langone they recommended the most intense regimen of chemo called FOLFIRINOX - which is comprised of 3 different chemotherapy drugs & would also involve a port being installed into my mom’s chest to also deliver chemo daily outside of her weekly infusions she would have to undergo. This was our first experience with cancer in our family & we felt lost, overwhelmed & deeply saddened. Our mom Rita is a giver. Always showing up for her family, friends & work colleagues in every way possible. She was actively going to Pilates regularly & passionately involved in her work in Early Intervention. Being that we are a family that believes heavily in holistic healing the thought of mom enduring this treatment with its known devastating side effects did not sit well with us. Thankfully through the referral of a friend, we were put in contact with Dr. Michael Robinson, a Naturopathic Doctor with a specialty in cancer treatment. After meeting with Dr. Robsinson he educated us on a chemo treatment called IPT (insulin potentiated therapy) better known as low-dose chemo that has the same efficacy as traditional chemo without the same intensity of treatment and a significant decrease in life-threatening side effects. We as a family had to make the hard decision of going the traditional chemo route and having mom completely lose her quality of life or journey into the unknown and take multiple trips to Chicago for her to receive treatment that was NOT COVERED BY INSURANCE. Meaning everything would have to come completely out of pocket from us. We ultimately opted for the latter. We strategized & from Dec 2024-Feb 2024, my family took weekly trips out to Chicago for mom’s treatment at the Ayre Clinic for Contemporary Medicine. This facility is like no other cancer treatment center. Treatment is administered over about 2 hours & the entire time you have a dedicated nurse that is there with you, talks to you & simply treats their patients and their loved ones like human beings not like a number. Thankfully after 3 months of treatment, all test results were coming back clear until one blood test done in May of this year where her tumor markers went up. As a result, more testing & imaging was done to ultimately confirm the resurgence of the cancer. We again met with the oncologist at NYU and they proceeded to inform us that we had a 50/50 shot of beating this whether we did the FOLFIRINOX treatment in conjunction with radiation or not and with that a prognosis of 12 months to live. They handed us a pamphlet on Palliative Care & sent us on our way. As a family, we were shaken to our core. The thought of not having Mom around by the next Christmas was devastating & made no sense to us. Especially because she was doing so well. We were focusing on diet, mindset & getting her back into the gym. So this prognosis did not align with what we were experiencing in her daily life. Immense fear, stress & frustration began to set in because we felt backed into a corner. No matter what we did it seemed we were going to lose our mom. Thankfully we met with Dr.Robinson of Chicago again and he had a very different perspective. He did recommend another round of chemo but did not agree with needing to go through with the full intense therapy being that we weren't in the same situation as before, instead, this was maintenance chemo to help keep things at bay & allow mom to fight this fight. The emotional, mental, spiritual & financial toll this has taken on my family is tremendous. My siblings & I suffered deep depression and immense financial strain as a result of this the first time around. However, we cannot give up now & we are gearing up for another round of IPT at the Ayre Clinic in Chicago. However, due to the intense amount of debt we encountered the first time around because of lack of coverage by insurance we cannot fully financially fund this journey without support. We need your help to raise $55,000 to assist with the financial burden of this essential trip to Chicago and the IPT treatment. Your generous contributions will make a significant impact in the following ways: 1. Covering Treatment Expenses: Funds raised will go directly towards the cost of IPT sessions, ensuring that mom can receive the treatment she needs without worrying about the financial strain. 2. Travel and Accommodation: The journey to Chicago is not only emotionally demanding but also financially challenging. Your support will help cover travel expenses and accommodation for my mom and my family, allowing us to focus on her recovery rather than financial worries. 3. Reducing Existing Debt: We have already accumulated significant debt from the previous treatment. Your donations will help ease the financial burden and provide a fresh start as we face this new chapter in our lives. 4. Emotional Support: By contributing to this fundraiser, you will be sending a powerful message of love, care, and solidarity to my mom Rita & my family. Your encouragement will fuel our spirits and remind us that we are not alone in this fight. I truly believe in the compassion of the community & humbly ask for whatever support you can give as we continue to face this journey of defeating Pancreatic Cancer. Your help will lift the financial burden from Mom & my family and enable her to focus solely on healing, spending cherished moments with her, and ultimately defeating cancer once again. Each donation, no matter the size, holds tremendous value to us. We ask that you share this fundraiser with your friends, family, colleagues, and social networks to spread the word and inspire others to help us keep our mom alive. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your kindness, generosity, and support. With Love, Rebecca, Reyna, Robert & Rita
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