Kilikini Needs Our Help

I forgot to mention. I brought this up with Christy, and she was dead
set against it. She doesn't like to ask for help.

But if your dear friend were dying, what would you do?

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

I just got off the phone with Christy. She was in tears. This is

why.

Quoted message said:

She has a large, painful lump in her breast. Actually, two of them.
And swollen, painful lymph nodes in her armpit. Her doctor has told
her that she has advanced breast cancer. She was scheduled for a
pre-op tomorrow and a lumpectomy (which I'm appalled by - this should
be a radical double mastectomy, IMHO) next Monday.

That's the worst case scenario.

The lumpectomy would tell if that would be necessary.

Quoted message said:

She called today to see if she should come to the clinic fasting for
blood tests or anything. Turns out, she has to give them $6,000 *up
front* for the pre-op (and they cut that in half for her because she
has NO money), and another $14,000 *up front* for the surgery itself.
No one had told her any of this!

So the surgery is off, and the cancer continues to grow and spread.

Bugger :-(

That would *never* happen here in Oz.

I hope someone over there can come up with an answer....*quickly*!!

--
Peter Lucas
Brisbane
Australia

'Enjoy today, it was paid for by a veteran'

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I just got off the phone with Christy. She was in tears. This is why.

She has a large, painful lump in her breast. Actually, two of them.
And swollen, painful lymph nodes in her armpit. Her doctor has told
her that she has advanced breast cancer. She was scheduled for a
pre-op tomorrow and a lumpectomy (which I'm appalled by - this should
be a radical double mastectomy, IMHO) next Monday.

She called today to see if she should come to the clinic fasting for
blood tests or anything. Turns out, she has to give them $6,000 *up
front* for the pre-op (and they cut that in half for her because she
has NO money), and another $14,000 *up front* for the surgery itself.
No one had told her any of this!

So the surgery is off, and the cancer continues to grow and spread.

Does anyone know of a hospital and physician who would be willing to do
the surgery pro-bono? Anywhere? Maybe we could take up a collection
for airline tickets if she can find that type of help.

I'm not sure if we could ever gather $20,000 together if that's not
possible, but there *are* a lot of us. I have Christy and TFM's home
address and TFM's PayPal address from another time. If anyone can
help, pleast contact me, and I'll pass that information along to you.

Honestly, if I had enough equity in my house, i'd sell it right now and
give her the money. But I don't, so I can't. This post is really the
only thing I can do besides pray more often. People are praying for
her, lighting pink candles for her, probably doing all kinds of things
I don't understand, all on her behalf. If there's anything you can do
....

Thank you.

I am absolutely NOT an expert on funding medical care, but I *do* know some
dirt-poor people who've gotten excellent care (in NY). Are there no other
options for her?

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I just got off the phone with Christy. She was in tears. This is why.

She has a large, painful lump in her breast. Actually, two of them.
And swollen, painful lymph nodes in her armpit. Her doctor has told
her that she has advanced breast cancer. She was scheduled for a
pre-op tomorrow and a lumpectomy (which I'm appalled by - this should
be a radical double mastectomy, IMHO) next Monday.

She called today to see if she should come to the clinic fasting for
blood tests or anything. Turns out, she has to give them $6,000 *up
front* for the pre-op (and they cut that in half for her because she
has NO money), and another $14,000 *up front* for the surgery itself.
No one had told her any of this!

So the surgery is off, and the cancer continues to grow and spread.

Does anyone know of a hospital and physician who would be willing to do
the surgery pro-bono? Anywhere? Maybe we could take up a collection
for airline tickets if she can find that type of help.

I'm not sure if we could ever gather $20,000 together if that's not
possible, but there *are* a lot of us. I have Christy and TFM's home
address and TFM's PayPal address from another time. If anyone can
help, pleast contact me, and I'll pass that information along to you.

Honestly, if I had enough equity in my house, i'd sell it right now and
give her the money. But I don't, so I can't. This post is really the
only thing I can do besides pray more often. People are praying for
her, lighting pink candles for her, probably doing all kinds of things
I don't understand, all on her behalf. If there's anything you can do

_______________________________________________________________________
I'm not sure I understand either. First off. Why would 2 painful lumps on
one breast translate into a double mastectomy? Secondly, a sore lump or
lumps (big) just doesn't appear.

And at the risk of sounding skeptical. Is this really the American way.
Why over $10,000 for breast cancer surgery?

However, although I'm very skeptical, I would be willing to contribute
anything that would help.

Finally, it's not a death sentence...........

Elaine

JoeSpareBedroom said:

I am absolutely NOT an expert on funding medical care, but I *do* know some
dirt-poor people who've gotten excellent care (in NY). Are there no other
options for her?

She has called every resource that she's found on her own, or has been
referred to. No one can/will help. She doesn't even have money for
pain medications, and she is in a tremendous amount of pain.

There HAS to be a doctor and hospital somewhere. Does anyone have any
medical connections?

She's a very special person. I don't want to lose her.

"elaine" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I'm not sure I understand either. First off. Why would 2 painful lumps
on one breast translate into a double mastectomy? Secondly, a sore lump
or lumps (big) just doesn't appear.

Part of the story is obviously missing. How did things go so far, unnoticed?
But, no matter.

Quoted message said:

And at the risk of sounding skeptical. Is this really the American way.
Why over $10,000 for breast cancer surgery?

I suspect that the cost of surgery is related not to the actual time
involved, but to how scary the situation is.

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

JoeSpareBedroom said:

I am absolutely NOT an expert on funding medical care, but I *do* know
some
dirt-poor people who've gotten excellent care (in NY). Are there no other
options for her?

She has called every resource that she's found on her own, or has been
referred to. No one can/will help. She doesn't even have money for
pain medications, and she is in a tremendous amount of pain.

There HAS to be a doctor and hospital somewhere. Does anyone have any
medical connections?

She's a very special person. I don't want to lose her.

Is it Medicare of Medicaid that's designed for low-income people? Whichever.

Where does she live? A place where there's a decent choice of doctors?

elaine said:

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

She has a large, painful lump in her breast. Actually, two of them.
And swollen, painful lymph nodes in her armpit. Her doctor has told
her that she has advanced breast cancer. She was scheduled for a
pre-op tomorrow and a lumpectomy (which I'm appalled by - this should
be a radical double mastectomy, IMHO) next Monday.

__________

Quoted message said:

I'm not sure I understand either. First off. Why would 2 painful lumps on
one breast translate into a double mastectomy? Secondly, a sore lump or
lumps (big) just doesn't appear.

And at the risk of sounding skeptical. Is this really the American way.
Why over $10,000 for breast cancer surgery?

However, although I'm very skeptical, I would be willing to contribute
anything that would help.

Finally, it's not a death sentence...........

Elaine

Quoted message said:

From my family's history with breast cancer, I firmly believe in

radical mastectomies in the case of cancer, no matter what. She
developed a separate form of cancer in her other breast following the
mastectomy on the other. If my mom had had a radical, double
mastectomy, she may not have died at 52.

My aunt developed cancer in one breast and needed a mastectomy. She
requested a double, to be on the safe side. They found cancer in the
"healthy" breast, as well.

I take this subject very, very seriously.

They did an ultrasound on the masses, and the larger one showed up
black. I understand that's a Bad Thing. She sent me a copy of the
ultrasound, but I can't read those things.

Maybe she'll hop in here to answer questions. I wouldn't count on it,
though. She's extremely distraught.

Cancer is a death sentence if you can't get treatment for it. IMO,
again.

JoeSpareBedroom said:

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

JoeSpareBedroom said:

I am absolutely NOT an expert on funding medical care, but I *do* know
some
dirt-poor people who've gotten excellent care (in NY). Are there no other
options for her?

She has called every resource that she's found on her own, or has been
referred to. No one can/will help. She doesn't even have money for
pain medications, and she is in a tremendous amount of pain.

There HAS to be a doctor and hospital somewhere. Does anyone have any
medical connections?

She's a very special person. I don't want to lose her.

Is it Medicare of Medicaid that's designed for low-income people? Whichever.

Where does she live? A place where there's a decent choice of doctors?

She's tried to get Medicaid, and they say she doesn't qualify. She
lives in Armpit, Florida. It's a poor county with poor medical
opportunities.

Pretty soon, I'm not going to be able to answer quesitons anymore. I
only know so much. But I'll keep going as long as I can.

Damsel in dis Dress said:

I just got off the phone with Christy. She was in tears. This is why.

She has a large, painful lump in her breast. Actually, two of them.
And swollen, painful lymph nodes in her armpit. Her doctor has told
her that she has advanced breast cancer. She was scheduled for a
pre-op tomorrow and a lumpectomy (which I'm appalled by - this should
be a radical double mastectomy, IMHO) next Monday.

She called today to see if she should come to the clinic fasting for
blood tests or anything. Turns out, she has to give them $6,000 *up
front* for the pre-op (and they cut that in half for her because she
has NO money), and another $14,000 *up front* for the surgery itself.
No one had told her any of this!

So the surgery is off, and the cancer continues to grow and spread.

Does anyone know of a hospital and physician who would be willing to do
the surgery pro-bono? Anywhere? Maybe we could take up a collection
for airline tickets if she can find that type of help.

I'm not sure if we could ever gather $20,000 together if that's not
possible, but there *are* a lot of us. I have Christy and TFM's home
address and TFM's PayPal address from another time. If anyone can
help, pleast contact me, and I'll pass that information along to you.

Honestly, if I had enough equity in my house, i'd sell it right now and
give her the money. But I don't, so I can't. This post is really the
only thing I can do besides pray more often. People are praying for
her, lighting pink candles for her, probably doing all kinds of things
I don't understand, all on her behalf. If there's anything you can do
....

Thank you.

Where does she live? (Sorry, I usually don't pay much attention to
such details).

Sue(tm)
Lead me not into temptation... I can find it myself!

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I just got off the phone with Christy. She was in tears. This is why.

She has a large, painful lump in her breast. Actually, two of them.
And swollen, painful lymph nodes in her armpit. Her doctor has told
her that she has advanced breast cancer.

Lumps that are breast cancer are hardly ever painful. Did she have a
biopsy?

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Doesn't her husband have any health care insurance or is he
self-employed? I know that sounds like a stupid question, but just
wondering.

Lumps in the breast are not usually painful, however any swelling of
the lymph nodes glands in her armpit may be.

Maybe I've missed something, but she just found these and the doctor is
wanting to do a mastectomy without any tests to determine if he or she
has other options?? Her gynecologist can't suggest someplace she can
go for medical help or tests??

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote >

Quoted message said:

They did an ultrasound on the masses, and the larger one showed up
black. I

oh God. That is bad. I am so sorry. It doesn't seem ethical that she could
be denied life-saving treatment--those doctors take oaths.

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Damsel in dis Dress said:

I just got off the phone with Christy. She was in tears. This is why.

She has a large, painful lump in her breast. Actually, two of them.
And swollen, painful lymph nodes in her armpit. Her doctor has told
her that she has advanced breast cancer. She was scheduled for a
pre-op tomorrow and a lumpectomy (which I'm appalled by - this should
be a radical double mastectomy, IMHO) next Monday.

She called today to see if she should come to the clinic fasting for
blood tests or anything. Turns out, she has to give them $6,000 *up
front* for the pre-op (and they cut that in half for her because she
has NO money), and another $14,000 *up front* for the surgery itself.
No one had told her any of this!

So the surgery is off, and the cancer continues to grow and spread.

Does anyone know of a hospital and physician who would be willing to do
the surgery pro-bono? Anywhere? Maybe we could take up a collection
for airline tickets if she can find that type of help.

I'm not sure if we could ever gather $20,000 together if that's not
possible, but there *are* a lot of us. I have Christy and TFM's home
address and TFM's PayPal address from another time. If anyone can
help, pleast contact me, and I'll pass that information along to you.

Honestly, if I had enough equity in my house, i'd sell it right now and
give her the money. But I don't, so I can't. This post is really the
only thing I can do besides pray more often. People are praying for
her, lighting pink candles for her, probably doing all kinds of things
I don't understand, all on her behalf. If there's anything you can do
....

Thank you.

I don't know where in FL she lives and I don't know if she has tried
this resource but how about
http://www.ligacontraelcancer.org/html/patientandsupportservices.htm

Presently the League has over 1,700 active patients and since its
foundation, in June 1975, the League has provided top quality medical
services to more than 50,000 low-income and uninsured Florida residents
from 50 countries.

League Against Cancer is considered a one of a kind institution in the
United States. The League counts with a network of more than 350
volunteer doctors and offers the following services gratuitously:

The services do include treatment and surgery - I will continue too look
as I can

Roberta (in VA)

"cybercat" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I just got off the phone with Christy. She was in tears. This is why.

She has a large, painful lump in her breast. Actually, two of them.
And swollen, painful lymph nodes in her armpit. Her doctor has told
her that she has advanced breast cancer.

Lumps that are breast cancer are hardly ever painful.

Wrong.

Elaine

Curly Sue said:

Where does she live? (Sorry, I usually don't pay much attention to
such details).

Okay, I just talked to her on the phone. They have guests, but I got
as much info as I could in the limited time that was available. I'll
try to answer everyone's questions in this post. (She didn't want me
to do this, initially, but she's grateful now, and will do anything to
help)

She lives in Zephyrhills, Florida, in Pasco County.

She has had pain in her armpit for about 2 years, but never thought
anything of it. She moved to the mainland to marry TFM about 18 months
ago. It was right about that time that she found the lump. The lump
only became painful (thus, scary) very recently.

Why didn't she see a doctor when she moved to Florida? TFM makes
$14,000 a year. He pays child support, a house payment, and $300 a
month for his own insurance. Adding Christy would be an additional
$327 a month, which they just don't have. If they tried to add her
now, the cost would be more and there would be a waiting period because
she now has a pre-existing condition.

The American Breast Cancer Association (I think I have that right)
started a new program *because* of Christy, to help poor women get some
measure of medical care. But it wasn't enough to get her through all
of this. She got some preliminary tests performed, but that's about
it, unless I've missed something. She didn't tell me what her medical
allowance was.

If anyone needs to know that this isn't a scam, Christy will be
scanning her ultrasound, the ultrasound results, and some other medical
stuff I don't remember right now. I'll post them on my blog when I get
them from her.

I'll be happy to answer any more questions that come up. Thanks for
caring, everyone!

Damsel in dis Dress said:

Does anyone know of a hospital and physician who would be willing
to do the surgery pro-bono? Anywhere?

If she could commit a crime that would result in prison,
wouldn't she get free care there?

What if she went to Canada and walked into a public
hospital there? Would they refuse to treat her?
I believe it would take a few months to deport her,
if she made a unfounded claim for political asylum.
I suppose she might get treatment in the interim,
while waiting for her case to be heard.

cybercat said:

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I just got off the phone with Christy. She was in tears. This is why.

She has a large, painful lump in her breast. Actually, two of them.
And swollen, painful lymph nodes in her armpit. Her doctor has told
her that she has advanced breast cancer.

Lumps that are breast cancer are hardly ever painful. Did she have a
biopsy?

The doctor felt that this was too urgent to do a biopsy. He wanted the
lumps out NOW!

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

cybercat said:

"Damsel in dis Dress" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I just got off the phone with Christy. She was in tears. This is

why.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

She has a large, painful lump in her breast. Actually, two of them.
And swollen, painful lymph nodes in her armpit. Her doctor has told
her that she has advanced breast cancer.

Lumps that are breast cancer are hardly ever painful. Did she have a
biopsy?

The doctor felt that this was too urgent to do a biopsy. He wanted the
lumps out NOW!

I see. Poor Christy.

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