CancerCompass message board discussion started by MelindaKay on 1/23/2008 http://www.cancercompass.com/message-board/message/all,20012,0.htm Tue, 02 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT Tue, 02 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://backend.userland.com/rss RSS.NET: http://www.rssdotnet.com/ Hi, my name is Melinda and my mother (age 72) was diognosed with cancer 2 years ago.  I just use cancer because it started in her uterus and spread to her colon and is pretty much everywhere in abdomen (including specks in her liver).  When it was discovered 2 years ago it had already incased her colon and they had to remove the colon and had to have a colopstopcy (I don't know the spelling, but it's a bag on the outside of her stomach that attaches to a opening in her stomach to what's left of her colon).  She was given 3 months to live at that time.  2 years later now she has been fighting the cancer with chemotherapy and still maintaining her job which is the reason why I am posting this message.  Normally my mom weighs 135-140 lbs. she now weighs 95 lbs. She is very weak but is forced to continue to work because if she doesn't work she will have no insurance to pay for her chemotherapy and her blood work and without that will probably die almost immediately.  She was not working for the whole month of December, 2007 because of complications.  Those complications are gone now and now she's returned to work. She works 10-11 hour days, 5 days a week and her employer is now saying all employees must work 6 days a week for awhile.  She barley gets rested after working 5 days and she knows she cannot work 6 days - she will die of exhaustion.  This job is really helping her to die faster but with out insurance it will be even faster.  Is there anything a person at this age can do to continue her treatments without insurance.  By the way, my mom lives in Tennessee where she can't even get on the State's insurance program.  Please, if anyone knows how my mom can quit work but continue treatment - I beg of you to let me know or give me some advice.  This is tearing me up and I I am a single mom and can't afford to pay her insurance if she quits working.  Help!! MelindaKay Wed, 23 Jan 2008 00:00:00 GMT