Finances can strain quickly when a family member is in treatment for a major health condition. Such was the case for Staci Owens of Florissant, Missouri. The 38-year-old wife and mother of two was diagnosed with breast cancer in February of this year.
Within 24 hours of learning she had breast cancer; she also found out she needed genetic testing because she was under age 40; learned what happens if hormone markers came back positive or negative; learned about surgery and treatment options; and how much time and how often she would need to be off work. Owens said she left the doctor’s office discouraged.
I had only been at the job as a nurse for six months, so I had not accumulated FMLA; I had very little accumulated time off; I had no job protection, she said. Looking at a summer of cancer treatment and tight funds just added additional stress.
We have a two-income household. One income cannot support us.
A short time later, Owens researched online and found the St. Louis-based breast cancer support organization Gateway to Hope. Its recently launched Insurance Premium Program gave Owens and her family the support they needed while she underwent chemo and surgery.
It happened after I got my port placed and I started realizing the financial impact of what this was going to look like to my family, she said.
Owens was looking for assistance because she was going to be out of work – and needed a liaison or someone who could help her find assistance.
I called Gateway to Hope and one of their nurse managers picked up the phone and she and I talked for 45 minutes to an hour, Owens said. , She told me about all that they could do, how they could help me – where they would enter and where they would exit and the type of services they provide and they removed a piece of that financial stress for me.
The piece of financial stress Gateway to Hope removed for Owens was reimbursing her for the cost of her health insurance premiums.
Funded entirely through corporate and private sector donations, the Insurance Premium Program will assist patients undergoing breast cancer treatment and reconstruction with the payment of health insurance premiums. It is open to individuals who live in Missouri and Illinois who are struggling with resources to help cover their treatment, and who meet the clinical and financial eligibility requirements. Patients accepted into the program are free to choose their insurance plan and their health care provider.
Our hope is to remove some of the financial burden that comes with a breast cancer diagnosis so that these individuals can focus more of their energy on their health and getting better, said Dr. David Caplin, cofounder of Gateway to Hope. This initiative allows us to broaden our reach tremendously. The ability for us to now be able to provide funding to more individuals who need assistance paying their insurance premiums, in addition to providing donated care and treatment, is revolutionary for our organization.
Owens conducted regular self-exams and discovered the unusual lump herself. Her breast cancer was discovered at an early stage; however, testing indicated she had a type of breast cancer that was very aggressive. Doctors recommended chemotherapy prior to undergoing surgery.
At that point, we had all the tests back and all the genetic testing back and the hormone markers back and I was triple negative with breast cancer, she said.
Research indicates about 15 to 20 percent of breast cancers in the U.S. are deemed triple-negative, which means the three most common types of receptors known to fuel breast cancer growth (estrogen, progesterone and the HER-2/neu) are not present in the tumor. If the targeted receptors are not present, the tumor does not respond to hormonal therapies and medications, and they recur and spread more rapidly than other types of breast cancers. While anyone can have triple negative breast cancer, it occurs more often in young women, African American women and women with the BRCA1 gene mutation.
My BRCA1 and BRCA2 came back negative, so I do not carry the gene, so I won’t be passing that on to my children. That was comforting, she said.
So I asked my doctor, ‘Can this kill me?’ and he said, ‘Yes, it can, but the hope is that it doesn’t. We are being as aggressive with this cancer as it is being with you,’ Owens said. She said it was a turning point for her in her treatment and
Owens chose a bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction.
In addition to insurance premium reimbursement, Owens was a beneficiary of Gateway to Hope’s Thelma’s Gift, which helps ease everyday financial burdens for women and families impacted by breast cancer.
They give a certain amount of stipend a month for rent, utilities, and also they do gas cards for to and from treatment, Owens said. For me it was particularly helpful, because when I was off work … when I had to miss work for chemo – next week, I would not get paid for that.
After recovering from surgery, Owens recently returned to work as a floor nurse at an area hospital and this is thankful for the love, support, prayers, throughout the process and the assistance of Gateway to Hope.
This is an organization that truly does help and go to their website and call their number – they will help you in the manner they can help you, because everything is patient-specific, Owens said. If they can’t help you, they will point you in the direction that they can.
They helped the Owens family get through a very tough time.
They are just a phenomenal organization. Just don’t be afraid to reach out to people who want and who are willing and who are able to assist you – and who are genuine in their concern.
To learn more programs and services, call Gateway to Hope’s Breast Cancer Lifeline at 314-569-1113 or visit www.gthstl.org.
