Give Mariana more time with her 7 year old son.

Mariana is 43. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in January 2017. Since then, she has done everything she can to fight it. She has had chemotherapy, radiation therapy and a double mastectomy. She has been taking the cancer-inhibiting drugs, Trastuzumab (also known as Herceptin) and Tamoxifen, since October 2017.

But the cancer has spread. It is now in her spine and in her hip.

To extend her life, Mariana needs to keep taking Trastuzumab. However, now that the cancer has spread, the drug is no longer publicly funded. Pharmac will no longer pay for the treatment.

That’s terrible news for Mariana. Results in the UK and US show that making Trastuzumab available to patients whose cancer has spread can significantly extend their life expectancy: from 14 to 60 months. That’s 3.5 more years of life. Imagine how precious that is.

Mariana and her husband James have been active in seeking the treatment she needs. They are supported in this by Mariana’s Oncologist. And they have had some success! The New Zealand supplier of the drug, Roche, has agreed to supply Mariana with Trastuzumab, free of charge, from the 27th June 2019 onwards, provided that Mariana and her family pay for six cycles of the drug. Mariana and James are very grateful.

Mariana’s private health insurance company have agreed to pay for 2 cycles, which means that Mariana needs to pay for four more cycles in order to secure funding for her ongoing treatment. Each cycle costs $5,400. So in total they need to pay for $21,600 of treatment. They need help to raise the money.

Mariana’s son and husband are the lights of her life. Please help her have more time with them. Your gift will be priceless.

Supporting Articles:

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12201210

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/110259840/were-giving-up-too-soon-advanced-breast-cancer-expert-calls-for-attitude-change-in-nz