Kate’s Story
The Diagnosis
Kate’s cancer journey began in December of 2022 when she was struggling to breathe. After visits to her PCP and Urgent Care for a chest X-ray, an ER visit became necessary. During a CT scan, she went into respiratory failure and was placed on a ventilator. It was later discovered that a tumor in her heart, attached to her mitral valve, was blocking blood flow. She underwent open heart surgery to remove the tumor, which was found to be cancerous. Kate was diagnosed with Undifferentiated Pleomorphic Cardiac Sarcoma.
Treatment
After recovering from surgery, Kate began an intense six-month chemotherapy regimen. During that time, she made 157 hospital visits for readmissions, port draws, blood transfusions, scans, and more. After completing chemotherapy, she remained cancer-free for 18 months before experiencing a recurrence in her heart, requiring a second open heart surgery.
Where Are We Today?
Following her recovery, just two months later, the cancer metastasized to her small bowel, requiring an abdominal laparotomy and a return to chemotherapy. Since December 2024, Kate has been undergoing chemotherapy every two weeks, along with scans every six weeks, port draws, blood transfusions, and ongoing care. From 2022 to today, Kate has had 273 hospital visits related to her cancer care. At $15 per visit, this has totaled $4,095.
At Park For The Fight, the mission is to ease this burden for cancer patients—so their focus can be on fighting cancer, not the cost of getting there.