Mandy Rittenberg's Fundraising Page

Dear Friends and supporters,

I want to personally thank all of you for the love and support you gave Mandy during her courageous nine year battle with kidney cancer. sadly Mandy passed away June 18,2022. Mandy was my inspiration and best friend, please help me continue her mission to fight kidney cancer!

Thank you Dr. Toni Choueiri and your incredible team for giving Mandy the chance to live life! My family and I are grateful. As Mandy said "NO REGRETS" 

Sincerely,

Jay Rittenberg

MANDYS STORY 

  Thank you for visiting my Giving Page to support Kidney cancer research and care atDana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund.

"You never realize how strong you are until being strong is the onlychoice you have."

Author Unknown



My life was normal. Family, carpools, minor aches and pains, normal everydayproblems, but basically just normal. In August 2013 I started having severelower abdominal pains. Since my appendix had been removed four years earlier, Isuspected this may be a kidney stone. When the ER doctor confirmed it, I wasnot at all surprised. What I never anticipated was that they would also find alarge mass in the space behind my kidney. I wasn't initially panicked. I wasforty-nine, took good care of myself, got regular check-ups, ate well,exercised (most of the time), I even drank green drinks and ate "superfoods. When the urologist came in to surgically remove my 8mm kidney stone andhe arranged for a biopsy of the mass, I remember asking him what the chanceswere that the mass was cancer, he said, "Very high." Now, I wasstarting to get pretty scared. The core needle biopsy happened in a blur. Thedoctors and nurses were all very kind, but I knew from the overly sympatheticway they treated me that the situation was not good. Biopsy results came backpositive for cancer. Next step was to determine where the primary tumor was. Whilethe pathology went to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Maryland, I went through scansand ultrasounds to try and determine what type of cancer I had. I felt like Iwas in a fight, but I didn't yet know who my opponent was. Finally I got mydiagnosis; Stage Four Renal Cell Carcinoma. (Kidney Cancer) I felt mostly numb,but survival instinct began to kick in.

I tried to stay off the internet. Anyone who has ever Googled a hang-nail, onlyto end up thinking they are dying of a mysterious African flesh eating diseaseunderstands this. We searched for the most highly regarded specialists in thefield of Kidney Cancer. We did little else. My first consultation could notcome soon enough, I felt like I had a ticking time bomb inside of me. The newshe gave us was shattering. He said my cancer was inoperable, and my treatmentoptions were limited. I left that appointment thinking for the first time thatI was 49 and dying.

Not giving up, we went to Boston to see Dr. Toni Choueiri at Dana Farber CancerInstitute. He took one look at me, said, "You're 49, you look 35 andyou're otherwise healthy. Surgery is your best hope, we need to find a way,lets get an MRI right NOW." In the morning, with MRI results in hand, Iwent to see the surgeon he sent me to. The next four words that came out of thedoctor's mouth changed the course of my life and would ultimately give me asecond chance. "I Can Do This... It won't be easy, but I can resectthis."

I never second-guessed my decision to actually have the surgery. It was reallymy best chance, though I was terrified nonetheless. The mass was lying on theinferior vena cava, the large vein that carries blood from the lower half ofthe body to the heart. A vascular surgeon would assist.
One month after my diagnosis, I flew back to Boston where I underwent aNephrectomy, removal of my right kidney (the one with the tumor) along with themass of lymph nodes where the cancer had spread. My first thoughts and wordsafter anesthesia wore off were, "I MADE IT!" I have a twelve inchbattle scar to remind me how fortunate I am to have found my doctors.

After what was deemed a successful surgery, I was placed on a clinical drugtrial, in the hope that the drug will kill any errant cancer cells that may beleft in my body. I travel to Boston every six weeks to meet with my doctors andthe clinical trial team. These people are passionate and dedicated to curingthis disease.

I am one who believes that everything happens for a reason, so I am doing mybest to find the many positives in this journey and embrace them. My family andfriends have shown me love and support I never could have imagined. Thesetrying times have truly shown me what is important and brought to light themeaning of friendship. New friends have appeared like angels to lift me up. Oldfriends have found their way back into my life to offer love and support. I amso blessed and grateful every day.

Mandy