'Cancer isn't cheap:' new Naples non-profit offers free treatment consulting

People seeking cancer treatment receive a plan on what their remedy will look like. They can take this plan from their physicians or they can gain a second opinion.

Naples Cancer Advisors works to grant an alternative judgment, if needed, for free.

Alicia Laplant says the non-profit, new to Southwest Florida, has saved her life along her breast cancer journey.

"I did four rounds of a very serious chemotherapy called the red devil, the top strongest chemo in the nation," she said.

She says at NCA she's found community and a second family when undergoing a double mastectomy.

"Last year, l personally found a lump in one of my breasts and went to get it checked out a little late. It was a pretty large tumor and I found that it had spread to my lymph nodes," she said.

Bone marrow injections and 12 rounds of chemo was not enough to kill her cancer. Her treatment plan took several doctors working together.

"Everybody has a different recipe [treatment plan]. I had 30 radiations after that," Laplant said.

Not every plan works and it can be very costly for those treatments. It can also cost thousands of dollars for a second opinion. However, not in this case. Medical Oncologist Mohammad Jahanzeb is with the non-profit, among 5 other practitioners. He says at NCA, these consulting services are free.

"I saw a patient who didn't want to lose her hair with chemotherapy and I was able to tell her that there's an equally effective, other drug [in her case], that does not cause hair loss. That was worth a lot to her and so easy for me to suggest. That's just a tiny example," he said.

Lana Uhrig is the executive director and says what they offer can make the difference between a patient putting their body through very difficult treatments at once, pacing them out, or an adoption of a different plan. However, Naples Cancer Advisors do not override a patient's initial physician plan. Rather it's a collaboration. Their work starts after HIPAA release form signings.

"Everything that we do is free of charge and I know sometimes people have a hard time believing that, but there's no hidden agendas and we do it all just because we're a philanthropic organization and it's all altruistic," Uhrig said.

"It feels like they care and it really does feel like family," Laplant said.