Courage never giving up on my fight with Cancer

Hi my name is Tonya Allen, I am a 50 year old disabled veteran and a mother of three that has been diagnosed with Clear Cell Carcinoma which in itself a rare cancer but my particular cancer has never been recorded in the location mine is in, which i the throat and nasopharynx. Because there are no cases for the doctors to refer to. The way I found out was that I had cancer is because I had a clogged left ear and I had promised my daughter that I was going to dedicate 2021 to getting my health back on track. I had stopped going to the doctors after losing my mother in 2010, my youngest son in 2011, my sister in 2016, my brother in 2019, and having my dad forced to move to Illinois because my two remaining siblings were being greedy and spent his retirement. These were all major players in giving me support throughout my life. I was so devastated and felt lost but I knew I needed something to change. On a gamble in hopes of getting housing resources because I was homeless since October 2020, I moved to San Francisco. I found an organization that put me up in a motel and I had started making contacts with the VA medical center here in San Francisco I had a few health issues that needed to be addressed, one being my clogged left ear. After being seen by a Ear, Nose, and Throat doctor it was discovered that I had a tumor that is located above my nasopharynx and below the soft palette on the top roof of my mouth. There were MRI’s, CT scans, two biopsies ( the first one was extremely traumatic) before it was decided that I would have surgery and radiation was to follow. The surgery was done on October 20, 2021 which lasted 16 hours and 50 minutes long. I was in the hospital for 10 days with me not being able to remember anything prior to October 26, 2021 due to oxygen and medication complications. I am now scheduled for radiation treatments starting December 6, 2021. While I am dealing with all of this I was actively looking for a permanent place to live before radiation. My social worker found me a place in a nice area and that is where I am needing. I would  need help with the rent for the first couple of months, food, and everyday household items like a coffee maker, microwave, tv, bathroom and bedroom essentials, etc.. This help will allow me to be able to focus on my treatments with less stressors worrying about how I will be able to purchase al of these items and being in the right state of mind for my treatments. This will also help me to stay in a positive state of mind with a place I can call home. I want to become an advocate for prisoners, homeless veterans and their  with the hopes of one day opening my own non profit organization focusing on helping prisoners adjust to returning back into society as a productive citizen for their community and provide resources for them and their families, as well as becoming an advocate for prison reform. I would like to provide the same for homeless veterans and their families. Being a homeless veteran myself I know how  hard it can be not being able to have access to the necessary resources and all the issues that go along with living on the streets or in a car. There is no stability nor security in that situation not to mention safety issues. I feel if I can get the help I need to get on my feet then I will be able to return the help in the future. This will be the first time in my life that I will be living on my own and although scary I know I will be fine because of my courage and willingness to fight this cancer without hesitation. Thank you for taking the time to read my story. If  you would like to hear a more in depth story about my life you can contact me at allen.tonya33@yahoo.com. Again thank you and God Bless.