Dear friends and compassionate souls,
My name is Hannah and I have a dear friend who is in significant need of help. It saddens me to have to tell this story as this isn’t the type of thing that I would wish upon my worst enemies, nonetheless a good friend. I have known my friend Allison for over 20 years and throughout a significant rough patch in my life, Allison provided unwavering support and compassion. Now, with the tables turned, I am hoping to help her just as much as she has helped me.
Allison is a mom to a beautiful, smart and incredibly talented 6 year old girl. She is also a loving dog mom to her 3 “fur babies” as well as being a loving and devoted friend. For the last 6 months Allison has been in and out of the hospital with several life-threatening conditions. She overcame both triple negative breast cancer and several cardiac abnormalities. Her physicians believed that the root of one of Allison’s current medical issues was Ulcerative Colitis. However, after many invasive tests including multiple endoscopies and colonoscopies, she was found to have a more serious condition called Chronic Ischemic Colitis which has cut off blood flow to her colon resulting in a significant amount of tissue decay and obstruction which requires more surgery. In addition to this causing severe pain, she is now at risk of several other life-threatening conditions including colon cancer, a rupture, a perforation or total collapse of the bowel wall, toxic megacolon, sepsis, and significant cardiac conditions. And, all the medication and infusions she has been treated with have created a serious “medicine-induced hepatic/liver injury” which will most likely result in the removal of the diseased and decaying portion of her liver
Unfortunately despite aggressive treatment, her condition continues to deteriorate. Given Allison’s limited insurance plan, she is not receiving the quality of care needed for her to heal. Her decline in health led Allison’s doctors to suspect she has another rare autoimmune disease which they have not able to diagnose; thus, they resorted to just treating her symptoms, not the root cause. Therefore Allison has not been given any clear next steps for a treatment plan or diagnostic tests to help determine the underlying medical condition(s). As we all know, most hospitals just call in specialists for each symptom or problem, rather than creating a cohesive team to assist in identifying all of her medical conditions and collaborate on a treatment plan. Her specialists seem to disagree on any concrete plan. Her severe inflammation and ulcers show no sign of healing and she suffers in pain everyday with no end in sight taking a huge toll on her mental health as well.
The hospital administrators as well as her primary doctor, and GI physician believe that Allison requires a higher level of care and coordination from a team of gastroenterologists, cardiologists, infectious disease experts, oncologists and other specialists in a special outpatient coordination plan offered solely by the Mayo Clinic. This option however, will not be covered by Allison’s insurance and will be all self-pay. This is where I humbly ask you to support Allison on her journey as she seeks an official diagnoses, including any rare autoimmune diseases her doctors suspect she has.
This will require Allison to come up with $5,000 for the initial consult and review by the Mayo Clinic review, $3,000 for several non-covered procedures and prescriptions, and an additional $3,000 for a recommended stem cell therapy. In addition, I am hoping to raise a few more thousand dollars for anything additional she may need during her treatment plan and the large medical bills that are rapidly increasing. The last thing she should have to worry about is paying the mortgage and ensuring her daughter has care. During these constant hospitalizations, Allison has of course been unable to work and her physicians have insisted on near constant bedrest while she is also trying to be a full time mom.
Please help me help my good friend by making a donation. Even a small donation and a share would be incredibly appreciated. The more people that are aware of Allison’s story by sharing and circulating this campaign, we can exponentially help Allison’s battle and dramatically increase the chance that she gets the medical treatment she needs. 100% of the money earned will first and foremost go to the medical care Allison requires. Your generosity can make a world of difference in Allison’s life. You are not just helping her receive treatment, you’re offering Allison hope, a chance to reclaim her health, and the opportunity to once again live a high quality life. Your assistance not only aids in her medical fight, but I know, will uplift her spirits and mental health, knowing that she is not alone in this battle while simultaneously expedites her journey of healing and recovery. Thanks so much and please keep Allison and her family in your thoughts.
