HHS grad, mother of 5 fighting for her life
Just months after becoming pregnant, Coleen Tagnolli found a small lump in her breast that she was told was non-threatening. But after her daughter was born she went for a second opinion to discover she has a rare form of breast cancer that requires treatment that her insurance won’t cover.
Now, Tagnolli and her family are fighting the insurance company for coverage, the hospital that misdiagnosed her, and for her eighteen-month-old daughter to grow up knowing her mother.
After hearing the news, friends and family have organized a community fundraiser on May 10 at Healdsburg Golf Course in Tagnolli’s honor to help raise money toward the clinical trial treatments. The initial screenings are $21,000 and an estimated $150,000 a year for treatment.
“I assumed that my insurance was going to cover me and my oncologist was really shocked when they weren’t, so that’s when I called my friend crying and she started my team page,” said Tagnolli.
Team Coleen is a group of friends and family that have come together through Facebook to fundraise and help bring awareness to Tagnolli’s case and help her family pay for the treatment she needs.
A graduate of Healdsburg High School and now a Windsor resident, Tagnolli has grown up in the area, working in the medical field as a nurse for St. Helena Hospital Napa Valley for many years. After being misdiagnosed with a non-life threatening mass, Tagnolli was later told that she has a rare form of breast cancer, metaplastic carcinoma, and that she is denied coverage for treatment that is offered only through clinical trials at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.
Over the past year and a half, after giving birth to her daughter Charlie, Tagnolli has undergone chemotherapy, radiation and a double mastectomy among other operations.
Now, Tagnolli is playing a waiting game as she fights the hospital in a lawsuit for her misdiagnosis as well as waiting for results in the third round of appeals to her insurance company for coverage of the treatment needed to fight the aggressive form of cancer.
“My pattern has been that I have been growing a new tumor about every three months and that’s with treatment of chemo and radiation,” said Tagnolli.
The Team Coleen Golf Fundraiser and Potluck will be held on May 10 at the Healdsburg Golf Club at Tayman Park. The tournament after-party featuring a potluck and music by the Travelin’ Soul band kicks off at 6 p.m. and is open to the community by donation.
A silent auction will be held featuring items such as a stay in Kauai and a weekend at Honor Mansion along with local wines and gift baskets. Donations of auction items are still being welcomed by emailing hl*****@ya***.com.
“It was amazing just how quickly the tournament has filled up and how many people wanted to participate and help and to see a lot of people come together that didn’t know Coleen but had read her story from a friend of a friend on Facebook and has contacted me. It is a nice thing to be a part of and to help a childhood friend and fellow mom fighting for her life,” said Caroline Johnson, organizer of the fundraiser.
Community members interested in donating to the Team Coleen Fund but cannot attend on May 10 can visit www.teamcoleentagnolli.org to make a contribution or visit www.facebook.com/ TeamColeen.
