In October 2019, Patricia Yon’s nightmare became reality when she was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. When it was found, it already covered her liver and hip bones with tumors.

Later, with five kids and the COVID-19 pandemic beginning, Yon didn’t have the money for chemotherapy, and she found out her insurance wouldn’t cover it.

During the height of the pandemic, Yon was unsure of what to do, so she researched her own medicinal treatments. This included the use of oxygen bags and taking vitamins C and B17 — and fenbendazole, which is a dog dewormer nicknamed “a cure for cancer hidden in plain sight,” by David Williams, an oncologist, in a published study.

“People get a little freaked out when you say ‘dog dewormer,’ but my doctor actually recommended it, and all the research says it helps,” Yon said.

Once the height of the pandemic began to settle down, Yon was able to raise the money for her first round of treatment through shirt sales and a support group she founded to help cancer patients afford their treatments.

Yon had the idea to have a car wash in order to raise some of the money for her second round of treatment.

A lifetime friend who works at AutoZone in Kent offered to hold the event there, and Yon’s children, parents, friends and more offered to lend a hand. The car wash ran from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday.

“A lot of people came out to support me today, and I couldn’t be more grateful for it,” Yon said. “Hopefully with all of us, we can raise a good chunk of what we need for the next round.”

Yon already hopes to hold another car wash in the near future.

“This [car wash] is a run-through for us,” she said. “Hopefully we can see what is needed to have a lot of success, and we can have an even better one in the future.”

Yon is also continuing to sell shirts on her Facebook page and occasionally raffles off baskets on Facebook. She also has a GoFundMe.

“Things get better every day. Tumors have been going away,” Yon said. “I’m just a mom trying to survive and hopefully these events help me to [do so].”

Ty Kohler is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected].