Inclusive Cancer Support Program Provides Clear Direction and Financial Predictability

Hi, I'm Alicia, and I was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in September of 2023. The initial recommendation was, 12 rounds of chemotherapy, several weeks of radiation and then surgery. And at the time I was diagnosed with cancer I was already feeling very ill and already really struggling with a lot of health issues. We'd been trying to figure out what was going on for a long time. And so, when we tried to talk to the oncologist just about our concerns about jumping into chemotherapy and radiation - because I already couldn't handle very much - we were very disappointed that they didn't have any other options for us and they didn't really listen to our concerns. So we kind of started to seek out some second opinions. We went to Mayo Clinic. They mostly just wanted to run a whole bunch more tests and imaging. And they wanted all the money for that right up front, which we couldn't afford. So we were just kind of searching out options. The surgeons at the time were kind of saying that they wouldn't do surgery until I had done chemotherapy It was only financial for me, honestly. All of these things, all of these cancer treatment things. It's all really, really expensive. And actually Katrina's program - when I considered everything - it looked like, to me, it was actually the most inclusive for the price. To have a year's worth of support. To to have all the testing and to have it be a set price was really, really helpful. Whereas the other clinics that I considered pretty seriously and they're like, "It'll be 8 to $16,000, maybe more." You're like, "Okay." It just seemed like she was giving you a little bit more direction as to what to do, even with the information. Once you find out where the cancer came from, like, this is what you do with it, also. As opposed to just getting the answers and not knowing what to do. Katrina is amazing. She's so brilliant, she has so many things in her head. It's amazing to me, the questions she can just answer at a snap. And she's also very compassionate and understanding and really understands the bio- individuality of people. We each have different things that are working for us. She does just a really amazing job, kind of sifting through that. In addition, she's a teacher. Like, she's teaching you what things mean and how to move forward in your life, understanding them. So, just even as you move forward and you face other things you will probably understand a little bit more of what you need to do and why you need to do it. My biggest piece of advice for someone facing cancer is - first of all, it's your body and you are the one that makes the decisions for your body. I think a lot of people go in and the doctors, they scare you and they say things. And I think we each have intuition to lean on to decide which direction to go. And I think it's really important to lean into that intuition when you're making these decisions. I mean, for myself, I really kind of had to find a balance between holistic care and western medicine. And I'm happy with the balance that I've found.