CRESTVIEW — The Crestview High School Class of 1993 is hosting a benefit car wash and bake sale for an alumnus with stage 4 kidney cancer.
Jake Taylor — a Crestview native who lives in Paxton with his wife, Jennifer, and their children, Kayleigh, 16, and Branton, 9 — recently received a diagnosis of clear cell renal carcinoma.
The 41-year-old went to the emergency room Oct. 5 with severe stomach pain. The next day, doctors confirmed it was cancer, his wife, Jennifer, said.
"He had surgery on Oct. 12 to remove his kidney and the adrenal glands. We got the pathology report on the 19th saying that it had metastasized into his adrenal gland and that the cancer cells were found in his blood stream. That's when it was classified as stage 4," she said.
Jake's classmates and friends are planning a series of fundraisers to help with medical costs. The first three are:
A Class of '93 car wash and bake sale, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 5 at Passport America, 5713 State Road 85 N., Crestview, with all proceeds going to the Taylor family.
A yard sale, 7 a.m. to noon Nov. 19 at Re/Max Agency One, 301 S. Ferdon Blvd., Crestview.
A barbecue dinner fundraiser, 11 a.m. Nov. 12 at Paxton Baptist Church, U.S. Highway 331. Plates include meat, beans, coleslaw and a roll for $7 each.
Amy Rader of Passport America, a classmate of Jake's, said, "We're doing the car wash and bake sale, and we will have orange ribbons that people can buy that support kidney cancer. The bake sale and the car wash funds are donation-based." Prices for the ribbons range from $1 to $4 depending on the size.
"We want to get the word out there with him not being able to work so that we can get him the help he needs," Rader said. "It's going to be an ongoing thing for him. The kidney cancer that he has is not curable. It's able to be kind of controlled a bit with medication. He will have relapses,” she said.
The group isn't trying to raise a specific amount.
“It's basically to help the family with finances, treatment and (things like that) as long as they need help,” Rader said.
Jennifer said they don't know what kinds of treatments he will have yet.
"We met with his oncologists. Chemo's going to have to happen because the cancer is in his blood stream. The type he has is listed as incurable because it's stage four and it's already spread,” she said.
"He will have to be on chemo for the rest of his life. We're hoping that the Mayo Clinic will have a clinical trial available for him as a stage four patient. We won't know until we get there on the 15th, and then we'll have a better idea about our treatment plan at that point," she said. The clinic is located in Jacksonville.
To make a donation to help, visit the You Caring account page set up in Jake's name at http://bit.ly/2eDV6oB.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview alumni rally for man with cancer