Campaign Story

First off, we want to say THANK YOU to everyone who has shown their support for our family over the past few months. It has truly been a whirlwind of ups & downs! There are days where we reflect and cannot believe we are still standing.

It’s time to share our story of up’s & down’s over the past few months as we navigate this crazy life.

To get you up to speed- here is a little background.

In 2008-2009, Joe battled brain cancer. After Chemo, Radiation, and finally surgery, he was able to make a full recovery. He fought so hard through treatment & recovery. Family & friends now refer to him as Superman! Although I didn’t know Joe at that time, what I do know is that his previous battle with cancer is a huge piece of the man he is today, the man I fell in love with!

I met Joe in 2018, after accepting a new job with Strong Volkswagen in Salt Lake City. We became best friends and perfect partners. Life was EASY! In the early phase of the Covid-19 pandemic, we took a last minute trip to Puerto-Rico. We had the time of our life & came home engaged. We planned our dream destination wedding as the pandemic settled down in 2021. We were married on the beach in Oceanside, California in the presence of our family and a few close friends. What we would give to go back to those days of bliss & minimal stress!

From the time Joe & I were married, we knew growing our family would be a priority for us. We also knew the process of getting pregnant would be more difficult than most due to the aftermath of Joe’s 2008-2009 cancer treatment. We did our research, saved like crazy, and felt very prepared financially to begin the IVF process.

December 26^th, 2022- Joe visited the Emergency Room for relentless stomach pain, what he thought at the time was severe indigestion. After some testing with no significant findings, he was sent home to manage his symptoms with over-the-counter medication.

In January of 2023- Joe’s symptoms slightly worsened & he was experiencing additional back pain. The clinic performed an ultrasound, which identified a very small cyst on the liver as well as a fatty liver. Joe was referred to a nutritionist in hopes that a diet change could help with the fatty liver and in turn reduce the symptoms he was experiencing.

February 2023. After extensive testing with our local IVF clinic, we were cleared to begin fertility treatment. IVF is not for the faint of heart! With the funds we had saved & lots of help from family members, we paid for our first retrieval & ordered the necessary fertility meds to complete the first egg retrieval. We were SO excited!!

February 10^th, 2023, Joe’s symptoms continued to worsen, including fatigue, trouble walking or standing for long periods of time. He also had continued severe stomach & back pain. Joe decided to schedule an appointment with my Family Doctor to get a second opinion and hopefully find some answers. The Doctor reviewed Joes entire medical history & ordered a Chest & Abdomen CT Scan to help identify the cause of his symptoms. We thank god we made the decision to get a second opinion when we did! The CT results showed 2 abnormalities- a large pericardial cyst, & secondly, a few small nodules in the lungs.

February 27^th, 2023- Due to the size of the pericardial cyst, Joe was referred to a cardiac specialist at TOSH, who reviewed the imaging & believed the cyst was non-problematic. He believed that Joe had been living with this cyst for quite some time and that it was not the cause of the strange symptoms Joe was experiencing. The cardiologist recommended proceeding with a colonoscopy & endoscopy to rule out any GI problems.

March 2^nd, 2023- Joe underwent a colonoscopy & endoscopy at LDS hospital. The test results came back mostly normal, only indicating a mild upset stomach. The GI doctor referred Joe back to the Primary Care Doctor. We were thrilled that there was nothing significant to report, but also extremely frustrated with not knowing exactly what was going on!

Throughout March of 2023, Joes symptoms significantly worsened. He was unable to move about our home, unable to eat, & unable to go to work. He experienced almost constant pain and frequent vomiting.

March 10^th, 2023- After receiving the testing results from the CT, colonoscopy & endoscopy, Echocardiogram, ultrasounds, & having mostly normal, unremarkable results, our PCP referred Joe for an MRI of the brain and Spine. This MRI would identify an abnormality in the T8 vertebrae of the spine, after which Joe was referred to an Oncologist to rule out Cancer. At this time, we thought we were just taking precautionary measures & didn’t believe this could be cancer. We were doing our best to manage Joes symptoms at home as we anxiously awaited a phone call from Huntsman Cancer Institute or Intermountain Cancer Center.

March 27^th, 2023- The night prior to our egg retrieval, Joes conditioned had further worsened, requiring him to be seen in the ER at Intermountain in Murray. Lab work showed Joes Liver enzymes were elevated, indicating liver damage. Although the ER doctor wanted to discharge Joe, we pushed for him to stay for additional testing. We would not take NO for an answer. Finally, the ER Doctor ordered additional testing, including another CT scan. This CT scan showed several more liver lesions as well as an abnormal mass near the prostate. Joes’ dad came to the hospital while I went home to get rest for the following mornings retrieval. Although these results were terrifying, we felt some peace in knowing that we were finally getting to the bottom of things!

March 28, 2023- It finally came time for our egg retrieval. Talk about an emotional rollercoaster! Our doctor was able to retrieve just 3 eggs, only 1 of which was mature enough for fertilization. We have never prayed so hard in our life for that 1 embryo to survive. A few days later, we received a phone call from the embryology lab. Our embryo was growing perfectly on schedule and was ready to be biopsied for genetic & gender testing. PRAISE GOD! Within a couple of weeks, we received the news that our 1 surviving embryo was a BOY & had no chromosomal abnormalities. We couldn’t help but feel that this was absolutely meant to be. We were so excited to be having a boy to carry on the family name, James Oren Wolfe.

March 31^st, 2023- due to the severity of the CT scan results in the Emergency Room, a liver biopsy was ordered. The biopsy confirmed Joe did in fact have cancer in the liver. His case was escalated with Intermountain Cancer Centers Tumor Board. We were so anxious to finally get the answers we so desperately were looking for. We anxiously awaited the next appointment with Intermountain Oncology.

April 6^th, 2023- Joe had his first in person appointment with the Oncology department at Intermountain Medical Center, where they confirmed our biggest fear- the cancer was back. Metastatic disease was found in his spine, liver, lungs, prostate-the majority of his upper body. The cancer had spread SO RAPIDLY! The team of doctors at Intermountain were surprised at how aggressive the cancer was. They were very worried that if Joe did not start treatment immediately, he would not have much time left. Joe had gone from a completely healthy man, to having to fight for his life in less than 4 months!! After meeting with the tumor board and discussing Joe’s case with experts, doctors classified the cancer as Neuroendocrine Cancer. The oncologist ordered a PET scan and scheduled a follow up appointment to review the treatment plan.

April 11^th, 2023- by the time of Joes next appointment, he was in extremely poor condition. Still unable to eat, barely able to walk, unable to get out of bed, continuing vomiting, & dramatic weight loss. The Oncologist pushed to have him admitted to the hospital in order to have additional monitoring and testing completed. During his inpatient visits, the doctors established his treatment plan to begin Chemo, including the plan for him to do 18 chemo infusions over the course of the next few months.

April 13^th, 2023- Joe began chemo & became increasingly sick. Not only was his body fighting this deadly cancer, but the side effects of the chemo were just as damaging to his body. Joe would continue chemo until his third scheduled round near the end of May 2023, at which point his body was completely shutting down.

April 17^th, 2023- Joe met with a genetic counselor and had blood testing done in hopes of finding a backup treatment option in the rare case the chemo did not work. Unfortunately, most insurance does not cover this type of testing, but we thank god we decided to pay out of pocket and move forward with the testing. This would later prove to literally save Joe’s life.

In late-April 2023- The test results came back indicating an abnormality in Joe’s cancer cells that could be targeted by a newly approved drug called Retevmo. Only 56 patients had been treated with this drug over a 5-year research trial. The doctor reviewed the test results with us and ultimately decided to continue with chemo for the time being, keeping this new drug as a backup plan in the rare case the chemo did not work.

The months of April and May were an absolute blur. I was fortunate enough to have an employer who let me work remotely during this time so I could also tend to Joe and get him to his increasingly frequent appointments. We were set up with Intermountain Home Care & Hospice with weekly visits. I was able to give joe IV meds and daily hydration infusions from home. Joe was able to receive oxygen therapy at home on a daily basis. I didn’t leave Joes side for weeks. I will forever be grateful for the family members who visited from out of town to offer support and gave me a chance to rest & collect myself.

In May 2023, Joe was referred to a pain management doctor who specializes in doing spinal pain blocks for cancer patients. The doctor gave it his best efforts, but unfortunately the spinal blocks didn’t provide any relief.

May 25^th, 2023- This was a BIG day for us- Embryo Transfer Day. What an amazing, incredible process. The next two weeks would be some of the longest of our lives as we awaited the confirmation of transfer success.

On May 31st, 2023- Joe underwent a CT scan to evaluate the effectiveness of the chemo. The results of the scan were absolutely devastating! Not only did he endure several rounds of chemo with the corresponding side-effects, the scan showed that the tumors were continuing to spread and grow throughout his body. At this time, the decision was made to stop the chemo and try to get the new drug approved by our insurance company. The cost of the new drug was over $10,000 for a two-week prescription which Joe would need to take for the rest of his life. Knowing we could not afford to pay 20K per month, we prayed and pushed for the insurance to cover this drug and give him a second chance. Joes doctors put in hours of work to get the approval and miraculously within 48 hours the medication was on its way to our home.

By the end of May, Joe had lost a total of 90 lbs. He was losing at a rate of nearly 10 lbs every week. It is absolutely incredible the amount of trauma the human body can endure. We prayed so hard that this new drug would be effective, in hopes to extend the time we share with Joe in this life.

June 2^nd, 2023- Joe started taking the new medication. Within 1 week, Joes symptoms began to slightly improve. We were able to do weekly nausea infusions at home which helped Joe gain his appetite back. We focused on making sure he was eating nutritious food to fuel his body in fighting this monster! Slowly but surely, his symptoms improved & he began gaining weight. He was getting stronger every single day. With each week that went by, the symptoms started to subside & Joe’s condition improved.

Throughout the month of June, Joe showed tremendous improvement. With each day that passed, we felt like we were finally able to breathe. The improvement in Joe’s health gave us the chance to celebrate the miracle of our pregnancy & plan for the future with a new baby boy! We were able to share our excitement with a few close family and friends.

June 27^th, 2023- We had a follow-up appointment with the fertility clinic to confirm the growth and heartbeat of our little miracle. We learned this day that the fetus had stopped growing around 6.5 weeks and the doctor was unable to find a heartbeat. Again, we were absolutely devastated. We had to face the unthinkable at this time in terminating the pregnancy at home. Not a day goes by where we don’t wish things had turned out differently, but we know that God has big plans for our family! Although we were grieving the loss of our miracle baby, we also knew had to count our blessings with Joe’s improving health.

July 31^st– At this time, Joe had been taking the new medication for nearly 60 days. The Doctor ordered a follow up CT scan to evaluate the effectiveness. Joe was so nervous for this scan! Although we assumed there would be improvement, we didn’t want to get our hopes up too soon. The results of the CT showed an absolute miracle. The majority of Joes tumors had shrunk by 50%!!!!

As of August 2023, Joes health is stable and continues to improve. We count our blessings every day. Joe thanks god for every day he is given. We keep the faith that his cancer can be cured. He is a fighter!

Over the past few months, we have been overwhelmed by the generous support from our family, friends and community. Thank you to each of you who have stopped by to visit with Joe, kept us in your thoughts & prayers, brought us dinner, & shared our story!

We have decided we are ready to move forward with the IVF process, but with the significant change in income in our family, we could use some help!! Each round of IVF comes with a huge financial burden. We have started a fundraising campaign with giftofparenthood.org. They say ‘it takes a village to raise a child’, but in our case it also takes a village to ‘make’ one.

We sincerely appreciate any support you can provide to help us grow our family!! Even if you are unable to donate, please share our story!

-Ashley