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I am living proof that God does answer prayers, and that He performs miracles every day. My name is Melody McBride. I am a photographer, and a cancer survivor. In the year 2000, I was one of over one million people in the United States to be diagnosed with this disease. According to a publication from the American Cancer Society, approximately 13 million new cancer cases were diagnosed from the year 1990 through the year 2000. Nearly one million, three hundred seventy-three thousand people in America were diagnosed with cancer in the year 2005. The American Cancer Society estimates a lifetime probability of developing cancer to be one of every two men, and one of every three women. Cancer is not a selective disease. It is not sensitive to race or to gender or financial status. When I was diagnosed, I was a single mother of two school aged children. The physical toll of chemotherapy and daily radiation forced me to take an unpaid leave of absence from my job, which put me in a very tight spot financially. There were so many bills to be paid. My kids needed lunch money. I needed gasoline to get to and from daily treatments. Christmas was less than twenty days away. We needed groceries. God blessed me with an incredible group of friends and family to see me through those tough days. But everyone is not that fortunate. A social worker from the cancer center estimated that roughly 85% of cancer patients in Alamance County struggle with these same issues while simultaneously fighting to overcome their illness. The Patricia Bynum Fund at the Alamance Regional Medical Center’s Cancer Center, provides assistance to cancer patients and their families who are battling financial hurdles during the course of treatment. Just knowing that help is available can allow a patient to concentrate more fully on recovery without the added stress of wondering how they are going to feed their family, or keep the electricity turned on. Since my recovery, it has become my goal to help provide relief to cancer patients who are struggling financially. Please contact ARMC with a donation to this fund. Every little bit counts. Thank you for your consideration. Melody McBride (336) 213-5033 Visit www.NotDefeated.com , a social networking site for cancer patients and survivors.
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