In 2013 my wife Marla was diagnosed with breast cancer. She went through the standard of care, which was a double mastectomy, chemotherapy followed by radiation. Her treatment ended in 2014. She worked during the entire process and when finished, she was a survivor. We thought we fought the good fight and won. She went in her checkups regularly without issues. Time went on and our family relocated to Austin. She transferred her care to a local cancer center and at one of her visits her blood work had elevated white blood cells. She was sent for a CT scan of the left side of her chest. A few days later the cancer center called and said our family needed to come in to review the CT scan.
It was a hot August afternoon in 2018 when she had her follow up appointment. Our oncologist came into the room and in less than 30 seconds our family’s entire life changed. The breast cancer had come back and had spread to the bones in her back and hip. She was now a stage four metastatic breast cancer patient. This meant that the breast cancer cells had traveled to her bones in her back and hips and created tumors. Stage four metastatic cancer is the only cancer that is incurable and eventually terminal. Patients remain on some type of cancer therapy for the rest of their lives. The only thing we knew for sure was to go to the top cancer hospital for treatment. That hospital and research facility was and is MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX.
Over the last five years we have been through multiple treatments to slow the progression of the breast cancer. Metastatic breast cancer becomes smart, and the treatments stop working. She has been on five different FDA approved cancer treatments until each failed and the cancer spread.
Her metastatic breast cancer has now spread through her entire body. (liver, lungs, bones, brain and lymph system) and we have also run out of FDA approved drug options. At this point, she have been transferred to the clinical trial division at MD Anderson. To extend her life we agreed that she would volunteer to participate in a phase 1 drug trial. She is one of the first human testers of the experimental cancer drug to see if it is effective. There are only a few openings in this trial globally.
This road of fighting has taken a great toll on our family in many ways. Financially we must pay for all the travel, meals, lodging and more. It takes time away from being a family and doing fun things. We literally live our life day to day right now.
I ask for your help in supporting Marla's fight. Our family would be so grateful.
Sincerely,
The Blaylock Family
(Eric, Marla, Gates and Jean-Luc)
