Stories from Caregivers: Victoria from ILLINOIS
IL
Victoria
FROM ILLINOIS
I'm the oldest daughter. June 2010 my mother was diagnosed with a very aggressive Grade 3 Stage 3 breast cancer. She underwent a bilateral mastectomy a month later. At that time I became her full time caregiver. Daily I had to assist her in getting out of bed to use the bathroom; prepare meals for her and the rest of our family, give her medications and tend to her surgical incisions. Within a month she was healed enough to start chemotherapy. During the next six months she was bedridden and I continued to be full time caregiver for her and the rest of the family. Because of this I was unable to work outside of the home and had to quit my college studies. My mom did not have an easy time with her chemotherapy treatment. Each time she had a violent reaction. After the first treatment she had an allergic reaction to one of the medications and had to have heart stents implanted to save her life. There were many times she was in the hospital during the next seven years. Even though we applied for any and all available assistance, we received none. After insurance paid what they were going to pay, my parents were left with huge medical balances. Their savings was depleted and all of their credit cards were maxed out, yet they still had more left on her balances. My mom has not been able to return to work because of the permanent disabilities she sustained from the treatment. Her continued medical cost puts a huge financial strain on the family, but she tries to stay positive. She now has a service dog so that she is not alone, allowing both my Dad and myself to continue to work and my sister to go to high school.
