Updated: May 01, 2020 06:12 PM
Stephanie Garczynski and her husband, Brian, love to travel. Especially to Colorado. But that is on hold now, due to her diagnosis of ovarian cancer. She found out in August last year.
"I spent a good week in the hospital doing tests, to find out what kind of cancer it was," she remembered.
Her treatment went like this, three rounds of chemotherapy, surgery, and three more rounds of chemo. Then, a spot showed up close to her liver. So she's on her second round of chemo. "I go every two weeks. I just finished my second cycle," she said.
But she has to go alone, due to COVID-19 restrictions.
"It's definitely different. I don't have my family there anymore. I can text, which is what I do. There's very little interaction," she said. She also has to take her temperature ahead of time, and do some prescreening.
She had the help of MOCA, the Minnesota Ovarian Cancer Alliance, before COVID-19. And now, she said it's even more important than ever.
"They continue every day to come up with new ways to connect with people," she shared. "And you do need to connect, and get your emotions out about this." She gets emails and calls from the organization, making sure she has what she needs.
MOCA offers virtual support groups, mentors, MOCA Cares Kits, Masks made with Love for survivors and families. They want to continue providing these services, so are asking for support during the #GiveAtHomeMN Campaign:
https://www.givemn.org/organization/Minnesota-Ovarian-Cancer-Alliance
Updated: May 01, 2020 06:12 PM
Created: May 01, 2020 01:25 PM
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