Community supports Freeland resident following breast cancer diagnosis

A first responder, ferry quartermaster and community informant is in need of help.

Following a breast cancer diagnosis, a first responder, ferry quartermaster and community informant is in need of help.

Last year, Freeland resident Melissa Simmons learned from her doctor that women should start getting annual mammograms at the age of 40. Being 40, she put it off for months until, one day, she felt something under her skin.

In September, at the age of 41, a mammogram confirmed the presence of two lumps in Simmon’s breast. She later found out they were a grade 2 and a grade 3 invasive ductal carcinomas. A sentinel lymph node, which according to the Mayo Clinic is the first lymph node to which cancer may spread, was also found to be cancer.

According to nonprofit breastcancer.org, invasive ductal carcinoma is the most common type of breast cancer. Stages 1, 2 and 3 are in the early stages and have not spread outside of the breast or lymph nodes in the armpit.

While this was not the news she had hoped for, the cancer seems to have been caught early enough, Simmons said, though she will need to take more tests and undergo chemotherapy for months.

In November, she underwent a lumpectomy to remove the cancer, as well as a lymph node biopsy, which consists of removing lymph node tissue to examine it. The lymph node turned out to be cancer.

While she heals from the surgery, Simmons, a single parent of a 12-year-old, continues to work full time as a quartermaster on the Tokitae, steering the vessel and assisting the captain on the Clinton-Mukilteo route. On her free time, she volunteers as an Emergency Medical Technician for the South Whidbey Fire/EMS. She is also one of two moderators of the Facebook group Alert Whidbey 2.0, which keeps the community informed by reporting all 911 emergency dispatches.

Working on the ferries and helping others runs in her blood. Not being interested in sports, a teenaged Simmons began to volunteer as a firefighter on South Whidbey, following the example of her older brothers, uncles and cousins and helping people on their worst days.

After graduating from high school, not knowing exactly what to do, she found a job at Washington State Ferries, working her way up to the Tokitae’s pilothouse. Surrounded by a supportive team and the views of the Puget Sound, she believes she made the right decision.

For some time, Simmons won’t be able to work. She currently expects to undergo four chemo treatments every two to three weeks, followed by weekly treatments for 12 weeks.

The insurance company has given her a deadline to start chemotherapy; she has to start within 90 days from her surgery date for insurance to cover it. She was hoping to start a little later in the spring so her son would be almost done with school, but insurance might not cover that.

To help Simmons cover the cost of house bills and medical expenses during this difficult time, Alert Whidbey’s administrator and founder, Kathy Hawn, launched a fundraiser on GoFundMe. As of Friday morning, 215 people have donated a total of $15,372.

When she learned of the fundraiser, Simmons got very emotional and felt grateful for the support.

The fundraiser can be found by searching “Support Melissa Simmons’ Battle Against Breast Cancer” on gofundme.com.