Help Raise Money for a Bone Marrow Transplant

Matt Bekhterev is organizing this fundraiser.

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Feel free to watch this brief video summary of the situation or read further for more details and specifics.

My dad (Vlad) and the rest of my family have been going through very trying times over the last year. In June 2021 my father was diagnosed with prostate cancer for which he received Brachytherapy- an internal radiation treatment aimed at killing cancer cells. Due to complications from the procedure, he has been struggling with control over his bladder and forced to live with a catheter.

Around the same time, his blood work started showing signs of abnormality, but it wasn't until November 2021 that his follow-up blood test raised concern due to extremely low white blood cell and hemoglobin counts. He finally got to see a blood specialist in January 2022 and was scheduled to do a bone marrow biopsy.

Shortly after his visit to the hospital Vlad caught Covid-19, even with the vaccinations his immune system was so compromised that he couldn't fight off the virus. After battling pneumonia complications from Covid, he finally felt better just in time for his medical team to hit him with the terrible news about his condition.

In February 2022 he was diagnosed with high-risk Myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) which is a genetic disease of the bone marrow. If left untreated it will develop into Acute Myeloid Leukemia within 8 months. A Bone Marrow Transplant is the only cure.

This is where we need your help!!!

The government does not subsidize the chemotherapy that is necessary to prepare him for the bone marrow transplant. Due to his illness, Vlad can't work, to help with the bills I have picked up 2 jobs (it's all I can manage due to the fact that I am still going to school). My mother is staying at home to care for him until we can get him the professional care that he deserves.

Aside from the unsubsidized chemotherapy, bone marrow transplants (BMT) have many costs that aren’t covered by insurance. These can include lost wages, co-pays for prescriptions and office visits, and travel and housing costs if the transplant takes place far from home. Many patients raise money to help cover these costs. Fundraising is a way that friends and family members can help.

We are currently raising funds for Vlad as he needs treatment as soon as possible.

We will provide ongoing updates on his status. Any money that does not go to his treatment will be forwarded to other MDS/ Leukemia patients.

[Treatment & Recovery Process]

The next year will be very tough for him. The plan is to keep his cell count low inside his bone marrow with the use of chemotherapy until we find a donor. Once a suitable donor is found, he will be transferred to the ICU and the rest of the cells in his bone marrow will be killed off by an intense dose of chemotherapy administered through a large vein in the upper chest. After the transplant operation, he will be monitored in isolation for a month for signs of Graft Versus Host Disease (when the new immune system sees the body as hostile and starts attacking the organs). Every patient gets some sort of variant of GVHD. This will be a grueling month because terrible things stem from GVHD like the lining of your mouth peeling, liver and kidneys being comprised, diarrhea, loss of appetite, vomiting, etc. He will be extremely vulnerable at this stage because he will literally have no immune system to help him fight any intruders. At this point the medical team may administer steroids to help fight off the GVHD and stimulate his system, but side effects of the steroids may degrade his joints and other functions. Following his stay at the hospital he will need to remain in isolation for 100+ days while his immune system "grows". Once he is released, he will be administered all the childhood shots as if he was a 8 week old baby again. If all goes well, the hope is that he will be back to normal and able to socialize within 12 months. The entire process is not just hard physically but also mentally, it would mean the world to him to know that people are supporting him through all of this.

[Treatment Plan & Prescription]

This is a treatment plan for his first couple weeks including all the drugs he needs to take. Some of these are covered, but not all unfortunately. We had some savings to pay for the first cycle but do not have enough to pay for the rest of the medication including all the extra support he will need.