Wendy’s Story

Site created on May 27, 2020

Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting.
In October 2017, Wendy was diagnosed with mucosal melanoma (a rare type of melanoma that occurs on mucosal surfaces that line cavities within the body). After 2 surgeries and 20 rounds of radiation, her cancer went into remission for 2 years. 
However, on May 27th 2020, Wendy learned that the cancer has returned and has spread to her liver and lungs. Her doctors plan on starting immunotherapy treatment soon. Her journey will be shared on this page. Taylor, Wendy's daughter, will be updating this page. *This is not a fundraising site and donations to this site do not go to this person/their family. We are not requesting donations.*

Newest Update

Journal entry by Taylor Todd

Ding ding ding! That's the sound of a Warrior Wendy fiercely ringing her bell! After 19 months of infusions, her two recent PET scans have shown no evidence of disease! She has officially completed her immunotherapy treatment for Stage IV Mucosal Melanoma!
She will continue to have surveillance scans and bloodwork for the next ten years. For the first two years, they will be every 3-4 months. Reoccurrence generally reduces after two years. If everything is clear after two years, the scans can be moved out to every 6 months- 1 year. 
There is a chance of side effects from stopping the immunotherapy drugs, so she will have a complete blood study in 6 weeks. It took some time, but the combination immunotherapy of opdivo and yervoy did the trick. To go from metastatic cancer in May 2020 to NED today is nothing short of a medical miracle. We are truly grateful for her healthcare team at U of M and for all our family and friends for lifting us up in times of hardship. This is a message from Wendy:
"Today my doctor handed me a piece of paper that said "congrats!". He also gave me a hug and thanked me! He explained that he had concerns early on in my treatment when the meds appeared to be causing more harm than good, and to see me doing so well now is why he does what he does. He is seeing many more of his patients on long term follow up visits than he did a decade ago. He shared that 12 years ago someone diagnosed with Stage IV Mucosal Melanoma would have a life expectancy of 3-6 months. My immunotherapy drugs [opdivo and yervoy] were FDA approved less that 10 years ago, with the combination use of the two drugs together only getting approval in 2015. I am so lucky and blessed that cancer research is making leaps and bounds! I'm thankful for U of M (yeah I said it!!), Dr. Lao, Dr. McKean, Dr. Wabeke (Go Green!), and all of their staff. Thank you to my husband, children, family & friends that have smothered me with kindness and prayers. God bless. Love, Wendy”
Click this link to read: Game-changing class of immunotherapy drugs lengthens melanoma survival rates
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