Manchester–Jessica, a 2005 Manchester High School graduate, is a 25 year old Princeton graduate student in chemistry who was diagnosed with osteosarcoma three months ago– just ten weeks before her wedding. The wedding has been postponed, and Jessica has begun intensive chemotherapy. Osteosarcoma is a rare bone cancer that occurs in only about 400 people a year. This cancer is very aggressive so aggressive treatment is needed.
The road for Jessica has not been smooth. She has not reacted well to chemo, and her kidneys have acted up. After her second round of chemo, Jessica went into acute kidney failure and was hospitalized for 15 days. In the past three months she has spent more than 20 days in the hospital because of complications due to chemo.
Unfortunately, the tumor in her right leg has not shrunk, and she will be undergoing surgery to have an above the knee amputation on September 27th. In addition, spots on her lungs have been discovered and she will need two separte lung surgeries to remove these possible tumors.
Since her treatment is so extensive and intense, Jessica has not been able to work and no longer has any income. She does not qualify for social security disability because she has not worked yet for 5 years, as she only finished college 3 years ago. Her medical bills and personal bills are begining to pile up.
Any gift you can give will go toward Jessica’s medical bills and needs, such as a prosthetic, a wheel chair ramp, copays, hospital bills, prescriptions, and more.
The goal is to raise $20,000 to get things started for Jessica. She already has thousands in medical bills, with more to come. This money will also help Jessica with her everyday life and new needs as an amputee. Any little bit will help!
If you cannot give a gift to our cause, then at least spread the word about osteosarcoma and how it impacts people. This rare cancer does not get enough awareness, and Jessica wants the world to know about it so that someday a cure can be found.
Please visit http://jessicabongiovanni.wordpress.com/ to get involved and to donate.
