Please help Ellen Cokojic in paying for her treatment and travel

Ellen worked for 34 years as a Group Fitness, gym and Pilate’s instructor then, on retirement, was diagnosed with Stage IV bowel cancer (Adenocarcinoma Mucinous). She suffered no warning symptoms and led a very healthy, active life with absolutely no previous health issues. After a blood test and scan for suspected gallstones, she was rushed into surgery for a 7 hour operation to remove her ascending and transverse colon including a tumour the size of an American football.

She was consequently put on to a regime of Chemotherapy which started to get results but she could not stay on that regime for any longer, nor can it be repeated, because of permanent side effects.

A second regime of different chemo had absolutely no affect at all on her cancer and it continued to grow quite aggressively.

Having exhausted her options with the Public Health system she was told that her histology was ideal to try a privately funded treatment of immunotherapy. This treatment is costing $6,000 every three weeks.

So far, after 6 treatments, she having a sluggish response so now have to also pay for some radiation treatments to “try and kick start” her response to treatment. She is not giving up hope yet but their retirement savings are rapidly disappearing. This is the only remaining option for treatment but will not be able to afford it for much longer.

On top of the expense of treatment, there is also the added cost of $2,000 each three weeks for the consultant and administering costs. As the treatment is privately funded there is no assistance for travel (5 hour round trip by car each three weeks or for any accommodation that maybe required for radiation treatment).

Ellen and husband are both retirees and have had to really ‘pull the belt in’. They had health insurance until her husband retired 8 years ago but then couldn’t afford it any more so cancelled it because the family had left home and they were both so healthy.