SUPPORT MY LAST CHANCE AGAINST METATOMIC COLON CANCER

Story

This is our last hope: I urgently need treatment abroad – a chance that could change everything, but one we cannot seize without your help.

Hi, I am Hileen and I am 39 years old. Together with my fiancé Mark and our daughters Wende (10 years) and Liv (8 years), we live in Gouda. Since June 2023, our lives have been turned upside down when I received my diagnosis: colon cancer.

Two intense years

The past years have been intense. Surgeries, heavy chemotherapy, scans, complications, side effects, and countless hospital visits. The specialists in the Netherlands can no longer cure me. Only life-prolonging chemotherapy is still possible. This is intended to buy time in the hope that science will come up with new possibilities in the meantime. So far, the metastases remain stable because of this, but that can change quickly and suddenly. The harsh reality: five years after diagnosis, only about 5% of patients are still alive.

But there is hope

Our search for treatments outside the Netherlands led us to the Salem Oncology Center in Houston, Texas. This specialized treatment center offers an innovative combination of immunotherapy, chemotherapy, and targeted therapy. This approach has already brought positive results to several Dutch patients with metastatic colon cancer.

On to Houston

In August, I will travel to Houston for a medical evaluation and a customized treatment plan. They collaborate with a hospital in Antwerp. After an intensive treatment phase, I will stay there for about two years for aftercare. The treatment is very effective: it works for 88% of patients, and for more than half, there are no measurable signs of cancer after treatment.

Crowdfunding

Because the treatment is not available in the Netherlands, the costs are not covered by the health insurer. Therefore, I need money in addition to the support of family and friends to get this treatment. A lot of money. For the first phase, consisting of the evaluation and treatment phase, I need about €250,000. We do not have this entire amount ourselves, but together we can hopefully gather it.

Will you help me?

Every donation, big or small, brings us closer to our goal and gives a chance for healing. Will you help me make my biggest wish come true: a chance to see my children grow up, to grow old together, and to create many more memories. Thank you very much for your help and support. It means more to us than we can express in words.

Love, Hileen