Alfredo’s fight against Leukemia
Donation protected
Hello my name is Dinuk de Silva and I am starting this go fund me for my friend Alfredo Luis. He is 21 years old. He was born with biliary atresia for which he needed a liver transplant at the age of 3 and has not presented any problems since. On May 16, 2018, he was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) . At the time he was attending Santa Monica College and working at the Coffee Bean.
He started treatment without delay and as a result, he was unable to preserve his fertility at that time. Despite starting treatment immediately, he still struggled to achieve remission in the first months. It turned into nearly a year of treatment, starting with chemotherapy, then resorting to immunotherapy, to finally push him into remission. Despite all of the months of treatment he has had so far, he is going to receive a bone marrow transplant to hopefully give him the long-term remission he needs for survival.
Fortunately, his brother’s bone marrow is a perfect match and he will be providing Alfredo’s bone marrow for the transplant. His brother’s recovery will be short, however, I know it will not be easy for him. He recently started a family and he has already taken time off to take care of his newborn. Their parents are trying to help his brother financially through this time but, they are spread thin as they have also been taking care of Alfredo’s expenses throughout the process.
When he learned that a bone marrow transplant was going to be necessary, he got a job at California Pizza Kitchen. He was hoping to raise some funds during the recovery process and to keep himself occupied. Once he made it into remission, he submitted a leave of absence to his job in order to move quickly to transplant.
He chose to delay the start of transplant when he learned of the need for full body radiation, necessary for transplant, which would eliminate any chance of fertility in the future. He underwent a procedure to preserve his fertility and it was successful, however it is not covered by his insurance. This procedure has to be paid out of pocket.
The recovery process after transplant is lengthy. In that time he will have to make significant changes to his life and when he returns home his mom will take time off work to be his caregiver. This is a very difficult and stressful time for Alfredo and his family. I appreciate any and all donations of any size just to make this easier on all those involved. I want to thank you all in advance for your generosity.
He started treatment without delay and as a result, he was unable to preserve his fertility at that time. Despite starting treatment immediately, he still struggled to achieve remission in the first months. It turned into nearly a year of treatment, starting with chemotherapy, then resorting to immunotherapy, to finally push him into remission. Despite all of the months of treatment he has had so far, he is going to receive a bone marrow transplant to hopefully give him the long-term remission he needs for survival.
Fortunately, his brother’s bone marrow is a perfect match and he will be providing Alfredo’s bone marrow for the transplant. His brother’s recovery will be short, however, I know it will not be easy for him. He recently started a family and he has already taken time off to take care of his newborn. Their parents are trying to help his brother financially through this time but, they are spread thin as they have also been taking care of Alfredo’s expenses throughout the process.
When he learned that a bone marrow transplant was going to be necessary, he got a job at California Pizza Kitchen. He was hoping to raise some funds during the recovery process and to keep himself occupied. Once he made it into remission, he submitted a leave of absence to his job in order to move quickly to transplant.
He chose to delay the start of transplant when he learned of the need for full body radiation, necessary for transplant, which would eliminate any chance of fertility in the future. He underwent a procedure to preserve his fertility and it was successful, however it is not covered by his insurance. This procedure has to be paid out of pocket.
The recovery process after transplant is lengthy. In that time he will have to make significant changes to his life and when he returns home his mom will take time off work to be his caregiver. This is a very difficult and stressful time for Alfredo and his family. I appreciate any and all donations of any size just to make this easier on all those involved. I want to thank you all in advance for your generosity.
Organizer and beneficiary
Dinuk de Silva
Organizer
Los Angeles, CA
Alfredo Luis
Beneficiary
