Who is Vicki
Victoria Jane Banner, better known to all as "Vicki", the gifted artist and owner of Vixenware (hand crafted jewelry), is once again facing a very difficult time ahead of her as many of you know. Her dark and morbid sense of humour and no bullshit attitude, honed in the streets of Durham England, has gotten her through many tight spots and and tough times in the past, as ongoing support of Zenon Hudyma her husband. However, right now, she needs more than all of that: she needs the love and support of her many loyal friends, with whos help she beat cancer the first time and with whose help she will do it again.
Vicki's Battle With Cancer
August 21st 2008, Vick and Zenon’s 3rd wedding anniversary. The day started like any other typical day. Vicki was off to the studio, but first would stop off quickly on the way to receive test results from the doctor. The news was not quite expected, and she never did make it to the studio that day. The drive back home was the longest ever. Zenon greeted her with anniversary flowers, and she told him she had stage 4 cancer. So much for celebrating!
Surgery took place within two weeks and upon recovery, an aggressive chemo regimen was put into place. After testing negative for the three predominantly treatable cancers and positive for the BRCA1 gene mutation. Vicki decided to go under the knife again for a bilateral mastectomy and reconstruction from stomach tissue. Over 40 lbs had to be gained to pull that off, donuts and pepsi really helped. 14 hours and a blood transfusion later, Vicki was awake and demanding a slurpee!
Nearly a year and half later, Vicki was back to her old self, finally being able to stand upright. Even the hair was growing in It was alarmingly curlier than it ever was before, but nothing that couldn’t be hidden under one of Jo’s awesome touques. December 10th was the big day – The All Clear (or remission as they like to call it). Celebration time with a nice bottle of vino!
False Alarm. Within two weeks Vicki was barely able to walk. Several tests and CAT scans showed the cancer had metastasized in the bone, aggressively spreading and eating a hole through the socket of the hip. Radiation was immediately started in a hope to shrink/even kill the tumor so specialized surgery can be performed. She started the second round of chemo, pill form this time around, she’s happy she gets to keep the hair this time. She takes this form indefinitely. At least until the next tumor rears its head.
The Current Situation
Being diagnosed with one of the rarer and more aggressive types of cancer can seem a little grim. BRCA1 is a human tumor suppressor gene, which produces a protein, It is found in the cells of tissue, where it helps repair damaged DNA, and destroy the cell when DNA can't be repaired. If BRCA1 itself is damaged, the damaged DNA can let the cell duplicate without control, and turn into a cancer. Being triple negative as well as BRCA1 positive means there are no after treatment drugs FDA approved in Canada, to help keep the cancer at bay as with the other 3 types of cancer (estrogen, progesterone and HER2). A recent MRI of the spine and other organs came back clear –phew! CT scans will be done every 3 months to monitor spread. Vicki is now walking again without the aid of a cane, radiation has shrunk the tumor on the bone and she sees the specialist next week to discuss surgical options. Until then we continue to research and fund raise to get Vicki treatment elsewhere, before it spreads to stage 5, which is considered terminal.
Treatment Options
There are various treatment routes to take. Vicki is spending 24/7 researching options for her predicament, it is also dependent on whether it spreads aggressively again within the next few months and surgical procedures may have to be addressed first. All treatment options so far are outside of Canada. We are looking at gene research and PARP inhibitors (these correct abnormal DNA strands). These are currently being tested in The United States, but won’t be available for FDA approval in Canada for many years. This page will be updated as time goes on.
Why We Are Fundraising
Primarily to help Vicki and Zenon in the long fight they have had and still have ahead of them. Vicki worked full time after moving here at 17 from England. She quit her job as a graphic designer to become self-employed and focus her talents in creating stunning artisan jewelry. Months after, she was diagnosed. No income, benefits or insurance, after all those years of working and paying in. Funds raised help towards rehabilitation, drug costs, bills and treatment costs overseas.
