It started in his arm, then moved into his lymph node, and has now moved onto part of his spine. The progress and direction of it is quite rare. Luckily, it is not in his nervous system or anywhere else.
Stage 4 sounds horrible but he knows he can beat it.
He has started immunotherapy, which has been shown to be the most effective treatment for Melanoma. The idea is to shrink the cancer in his bones and cut out the mass in his lymph node.
This treatment will last a year.
Immunotherapy completely wipes him out. He has constant fevers and headaches. These symptoms have prevented him from being able to work as a USPS mail carrier. He is hoping that his body will adjust to the therapy and he can feel at least a little normal again.
When the fever started on September 21st, it was at 103 degrees. His oncologist said he should go to the ER. They couldn't figure out the cause of the fever and therefore kept him in the hospital for eight days. They ran every test possible (MRI, blood tests, CT scan, etc.) They eventually concluded that Tylenol was all that could be done while his body fights.
He has never done any kind of Go Fund Me, and is not good at asking for help (the strong headed Coffey curse) but after a little pushing I was able to convince him that this is a step that needs to be taken.
Anyone that knows anything about the US health care and insurance system will know that there is a huge struggle ahead.
Both Dustin and his wife, Kim, have jobs that provide insurance. Due to that, his first immunotherapy session cost him virtually nothing. However, the ER stay, future MRIs, CT scans, surgery, immunotherapy sessions, and other tests and treatments will not be free. The bills are already racking up.
Stress is not good for anyone, especially if your body is fighting cancer.
Of course, we will not know the cost until about a month after each treatment or test. There's no way to say what the final damage will be, but based on what he has been able to look up via internet sources, it's definitely going to be in the tens of thousands over the next year.
I have just made a rough estimate in regards to what I think his costs will be around and that is what I based the goal on. However, I personally assume they will be more so in the hundred thousand area.
There's only so much personal and sick time for work and he has already blown through those. So he's now dealing with loss of wages on top of medical bills. At this point, his immediate concern is just getting by on his monthly bills.
Dustin and Kim want to express their deepest appreciation for any support you can give to help him overcome this challenge.
He will have control of this page and will keep it updated on his progress.
Thank you so much for your support and love. Our entire family is incredibly grateful.
Eileen Coffey
