A Newfoundland family is offering its heart-felt thanks to those who have contributed to make it possible for a young woman to undergo clinical trials in Montreal for her stage 4 tongue cancer.

Chelsie Coombs was diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue last year, and learned that the cancer had spread to her lungs.

She is undergoing clinical trials in Montreal and is responding well to the treatments according to her father Allan, but the family is on their own when it comes to medical care.

He says the doctors tell them that Chelsie is responding well as she prepares for her second round of treatment. He calls it nothing short of a miracle.

Because she is undergoing clinical trials, MCP does not pay the costs and the family has to pay out of pocket or use funds raised through a GoFundMe account.

Allan Coombs says Chelsie’s mom will be at the opening of the Legislature in October to bring attention to what her family and others battling rare and aggressive cancers are facing.