Teena Rodriguez

Teena with her son

Teena is a hard working mother who is the primary financial supporter for her family. Never being seriously ill in her life, she dedicated herself to her work, friends, and family. You would also find her camping with family and friends and doing beach clean-ups on weekends with her partner and 12-year-old son.
In May of 2010, her partner of 19 years became very ill. During a year and a half, Teena’s partner was in an induced coma, had two heart valve transplants, had his gall bladder removed and was diagnosed with diabetes. Teena was by his side the whole time and took time off work to be his caregiver after his release from the hospital.
Toward the end of 2011, as her partner began to recover, Teena started feeling ill. She was diagnosed with Stage 3 Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in January of 2012. She immediately started a treatment program and had six rounds of chemotherapy. Due to complications she was hospitalized twice and had to change her treatment plan. In October of 2012, she went through a month-long daily radiation treatment plan. In December of 2012, after more testing she was officially in remission.
Although she was not fully recovered from treatment and a bad case of shingles, Teena was forced to go back to work in January 2013 due to her disability payments ending. Because she was working temporary positions, she did not have comprehensive health insurance and was unable to continue affording COBRA. Teena’s insurance only covered doctor visits and prescriptions; she could not afford $1,500 out-of-pocket for a PET scan.
In December of 2013, she was finally able to enroll in a comprehensive insurance plan that would cover all visits and treatments. She immediately had a PET scan and was informed her cancer had returned and was diagnosed with Stage 4 Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. The cancer is so aggressive that it is now in her bone marrow.
Teena had to stop working and is once again on disability. She started double rounds of chemotherapy in January of this year and had serious complications which resulted in being hospitalized for over a month. She is currently undergoing more treatment and is scheduled to undergo a stem cell transplant in May. Teena will potentially be in the hospital for at least three weeks after the transplant. Although the hospital is close to her home, it is not close enough for her family to visit without it being a hardship. The cost of gas to and from the hospital, plus the cost of prescriptions, co-pays, basic necessities, utilities and rent has created an extreme financial hardship for her and her family.
Teena’s family and friends have contacted the Bone Marrow & Cancer Foundation to set up a One-to-One Fund so it could help financially and ease her stress. Any donations will be extremely appreciated.
Click here to contribute to Teena’s One-to-One Fund
Or you can send a check, payable to the Bone Marrow & Cancer Foundation.
Be sure to include Teena’s name on the front of the check.
Send check to:
the Bone Marrow & Cancer Foundation
515 Madison Avenue, Suite 1130
New York, New York 10022