Kobro's Cancer Crew #12: Frosted Tips!

Largely thanks to you (the KCC), we raised $10,221 from 259 donors.

We had 135 people vote for frosted tips ($5,458 raised), 79 vote for Mohawk ($2,842 raised), 16 vote for half shaves ($532 raised), and 29 for either a "Custom request" (including "Eat the hair", "Shave the top, keep the sides", and "Shaved heart emoji"), or "Delegation to Mikayla to decide" ($1,389 raised).

The average cost for Lymphoma treatment (out of pocket) is $10,175, which means we will be able to cover the entirety of someone's treatment (or we'll cover a good chunk of a few folks' treatment). Still open to last minute donations, let me know!

Mikayla and I will be doing some research and figuring out the best way to distribute the funds over the next few days. In the meantime, just know that you made this happen.

So now I have frosted tips…

Thanks to Sam Goldin (KCC Member) for taking photographs of the ~frosting~.

After posting the fundraiser on Instagram, I found out that quite a few friends had some form of cancer, and I didn't know about it!

Sharing a few takeaways and learnings from speaking with other young cancer patients (you'll notice similar themes to these updates).

• You've got two lives, and the second starts when you realize you only have one — everyone who's had cancer seems to have a strong grasp of how special our time is in this world. It often leads to an extra motivation or "fire" under them. I wish I had the same fire I have now prior to my diagnosis.
• Chemo is shitty, but no chemo is shittier. If I didn't have chemo, I'd be dead in 2-3 years. Most patients I've spoken with are incredibly grateful for modern medicine. They even see themselves as lucky. It's easy to forget the world is progressing in countless ways (and that we can accelerate that progress).
• It's not "I" or "me" who powers through treatment, it's the community around an individual. On a more personal level, it's the KCC! My family visiting during infusions, Mikayla being my rock through all of this, and close friends sending endless cancer jokes.

The fundraiser was such a strong reminder that if you put stuff out in the world, those who resonate will reach out and support you.

All of us have experienced the ~Internet~, so the idea is pretty obvious… but very few people actually act on it. There are a lot of folks who have something important to say, but don't make it enough of a priority to say those things (myself included).

Very glad I've had cancer as a catalyst to start saying more in a more "out there" way.

Anyways, shaving off the frosted tips this weekend, and have round #9 later today. Looking forward to hitting the 3/4ths mark!

Love,
David