Support Chris's Fight Against Leukemia

My name is Ryan Eldridge, and I am raising funds to help my older brother Chris and his family in Oklahoma. Chris has been diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) and is facing an uphill battle. A couple weeks ago, he went to the ER in Tulsa and was hospitalized after they found he was anemic. He received an emergency blood transfusion (2 units) followed by many further tests and scans. They found that all his blood counts were severely low and determined that a bone marrow biopsy was needed. After determining the AML diagnosis, his medical team in Tulsa has advised him to seek treatment at a facility that specializes in treating Acute Leukemia and potential bone marrow transplants; there is not one in Tulsa. He has been admitted to the Winship Cancer Institute at Emory in Atlanta. This will allow him to have his brother, Ryan, with him as he lives near this facility. Chris will likely be in Atlanta for at least 6-8 weeks.

Since admission in Emory, he has received another unit of blood to boost his counts. He has also received many tests and scans, including another bone marrow biopsy. He will be starting chemotherapy on Monday, 4/28, with “7+3 chemo regimen”. This will be an intense 7-day continuous treatment. During this time, and the weeks afterwards, he will require many more blood transfusions until his body can recover and begin producing good blood again. After this round of chemo he will be monitored and it will be determined if a bone marrow transplant is recommended. He will be in the hospital for at least a month, and will need to remain nearby for outpatient treatment for a few weeks afterwards before he can be released back to Tulsa.

Chris is a loving, hardworking father with 3 awesome kids. He's a committed husband and loyal son. He is active with Scout Troop 10 which meets at Asbury Church. A genuinely nice guy who would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it and would never ask for anything in return. He has dedicated many years of his life working maintenance for Asbury Church in Tulsa. Behind the scenes, he has been there for this community, helping keep up their facilities for the congregation. At times he has worked multiple jobs to make ends meet for his family.

He needs our support now. Please send him encouragement and assistance to your ability. Funds will be used for medical expenses, travel costs, and other needs for his family during this time. For those wishing to donate more directly and avoid fees, or offer other kinds of support, please reach out to me directly.

We have received over $5500 in total donations over the last few weeks. For transparency, the following is how funds are planned to be utilized:

Donations received outside of GoFundMe via PayPal or other platforms: $4750. The goal on GoFundMe has been adjusted downward to reflect these outside donations!