Your Support Can Give Natasha TheLife She Deserves
Tax deductible
Will you be an angel for Natasha?
This is an appeal for help, so that our friend Natasha Fernandes, 40 yrs old, can have a chance to stay alive and beat Chronic Myeloid Leukemia - T3151 mutation. In these unusually trying times for everyone, many of us are looking to find purpose, for opportunities to help in our communities, and help those in need. Here is an opportunity for you to help save one life.
There is real sense of urgency to raise funds to help Natasha -- by the 1st of October 2020 to be precise. Time is of essence. You see, after 14 years of struggle with Leukemia, they have found a DNA match for her bone marrow transfusion, and Natasha needs to come up with $30,000 in the coming weeks for total treatment expenses. However, even though our fundraising goal is $30,000, the absolute urgency is to raise the first $17,000 by the end of next week in order for her to simply put a down-payment for the treatment process to get started: 6 days of continuous Chemotherapy, followed by the Bone Marrow Transfusion process.
Yes, we are aware that this fundraising goal is a difficult one, but not impossible. We are of the sincere belief that if we can fight for her at a tiny fraction of the rate that she has been doing so, with courage and compassion, there is a chance that miracles can happen.
---------------------------------
How can you help?
---------------------------------
You can make a donation for Natasha here. However, if you cannot afford to donate, you could help by simply spreading the word for this fundraising effort to your community, close and trusted circle of family, friends, and colleagues.
You see, Natasha is a fighter despite all the challenges she has faced in her life. She continues to put one foot in front of the other to keep carrying on, and keep hope alive day-by-day, that she may have a chance at life. Amazingly, she does this with a sweet smile on her face, while caring for, and financially supporting her elderly parents. She has been a hard worker for her entire life, and has been a productive member of society. She has sought out any and every opportunity to help people in need. Now, she is in need of financial support to help her get through the next many months of treatment, followed by a highly complex recovery process.
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Natasha's Story:
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Natasha Fernandes, was born in Goa, India.
At the age of 25, a few months after her marriage, Natasha was diagnosed with Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia - a rare blood cancer caused by the mutation of the chromosomes which led to a rapid multiplication of mutated white blood cells.
As you can imagine, the months that followed her diagnosis were incredibly stressful, confusing, and scary, while searching for, trying to understand, and assess treatment options. After months of effort, Natasha was lucky to be enrolled into a program arranged by the Max Foundation that treated her with Gleevec, which is medication in the form of a tablet that allowed Natasha to live a life with some sense of normalcy. Additonally, the medication would allow her to avoid the harsh and highly invasive Chemotherapy treatment.
5 years later, Natasha was blessed with a beautiful 7.5 lbs baby boy Jared. Her joy was unbounded but short-lived. Tragically her beloved baby boy Jared, at just 2 years of age, was killed in a hit-and-run car accident. Natasha's whole world crumbled right in front of her eyes, and yet somehow, in the months that followed, she found the courage to pick herself up from her devastating loss, and remain functional. Despite her grief, Natasha was available to help anyone who needed her, and lived her life with compassion and empathy for all. But life had more heartache in store for her.
In 2011 she filed for divorce from her husband, who she found out, was cheating on her the whole time. Soon after that, she picked herself up by the bootstraps, and being the strong independent woman that she is, started to rebuild her life.
Over the last few years, while carrying the burden of her grief, and the anticipation that her body would grow resistant to her Gleevec treatment any day, Natasha found work as a Learning and Training Contractor, and excelled at it. She continued to support herself and her elderly parents, and slowly started to create a new normal for herself.
In the past months, Natasha's body has become resistant to her Gleevec treatment. At this point in time, Natasha has two treatment options:
1. Treatment with Ponatinib - a drug which is a tyrosine kinase receptor inhibitor. It is not available in India, and would cost her an average of 500,000 INR (approximately $7,000) per month for the rest of her life.
2. A bone marrow transplant, which will leave her bedridden for the next 3-5 months, and intense home-recovery for at least one year. The post-infusion process consists of a long list of complications that could occur, and will also require her to have her blood tested twice a week for 4-6 months, along with other checkups that would monitor her recovery process.
Natasha felt hopeless until new DNA testing found a donor with a perfect DNA match -- her brother. It is a God-given opportunity for her to have a chance at life, and it would be heartbreaking if we were to loose her after all these years of her struggle, simply because she didn't have the ability to pay for her life-saving procedure.
Included in this appeal are a couple of pictures of Natasha, so that you may see her sweetness, her strength, and her vulnerability. If you feel drawn to donating any amount big or small, all and any of it will be received with immense gratitude.
You can make a donation here, or help us spread the word to help save the life of our friend Natasha.
Thank you all, be safe, be blessed.
This is an appeal for help, so that our friend Natasha Fernandes, 40 yrs old, can have a chance to stay alive and beat Chronic Myeloid Leukemia - T3151 mutation. In these unusually trying times for everyone, many of us are looking to find purpose, for opportunities to help in our communities, and help those in need. Here is an opportunity for you to help save one life.
There is real sense of urgency to raise funds to help Natasha -- by the 1st of October 2020 to be precise. Time is of essence. You see, after 14 years of struggle with Leukemia, they have found a DNA match for her bone marrow transfusion, and Natasha needs to come up with $30,000 in the coming weeks for total treatment expenses. However, even though our fundraising goal is $30,000, the absolute urgency is to raise the first $17,000 by the end of next week in order for her to simply put a down-payment for the treatment process to get started: 6 days of continuous Chemotherapy, followed by the Bone Marrow Transfusion process.
Yes, we are aware that this fundraising goal is a difficult one, but not impossible. We are of the sincere belief that if we can fight for her at a tiny fraction of the rate that she has been doing so, with courage and compassion, there is a chance that miracles can happen.
---------------------------------
How can you help?
---------------------------------
You can make a donation for Natasha here. However, if you cannot afford to donate, you could help by simply spreading the word for this fundraising effort to your community, close and trusted circle of family, friends, and colleagues.
You see, Natasha is a fighter despite all the challenges she has faced in her life. She continues to put one foot in front of the other to keep carrying on, and keep hope alive day-by-day, that she may have a chance at life. Amazingly, she does this with a sweet smile on her face, while caring for, and financially supporting her elderly parents. She has been a hard worker for her entire life, and has been a productive member of society. She has sought out any and every opportunity to help people in need. Now, she is in need of financial support to help her get through the next many months of treatment, followed by a highly complex recovery process.
---------------------------------
Natasha's Story:
---------------------------------
Natasha Fernandes, was born in Goa, India.
At the age of 25, a few months after her marriage, Natasha was diagnosed with Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia - a rare blood cancer caused by the mutation of the chromosomes which led to a rapid multiplication of mutated white blood cells.
As you can imagine, the months that followed her diagnosis were incredibly stressful, confusing, and scary, while searching for, trying to understand, and assess treatment options. After months of effort, Natasha was lucky to be enrolled into a program arranged by the Max Foundation that treated her with Gleevec, which is medication in the form of a tablet that allowed Natasha to live a life with some sense of normalcy. Additonally, the medication would allow her to avoid the harsh and highly invasive Chemotherapy treatment.
5 years later, Natasha was blessed with a beautiful 7.5 lbs baby boy Jared. Her joy was unbounded but short-lived. Tragically her beloved baby boy Jared, at just 2 years of age, was killed in a hit-and-run car accident. Natasha's whole world crumbled right in front of her eyes, and yet somehow, in the months that followed, she found the courage to pick herself up from her devastating loss, and remain functional. Despite her grief, Natasha was available to help anyone who needed her, and lived her life with compassion and empathy for all. But life had more heartache in store for her.
In 2011 she filed for divorce from her husband, who she found out, was cheating on her the whole time. Soon after that, she picked herself up by the bootstraps, and being the strong independent woman that she is, started to rebuild her life.
Over the last few years, while carrying the burden of her grief, and the anticipation that her body would grow resistant to her Gleevec treatment any day, Natasha found work as a Learning and Training Contractor, and excelled at it. She continued to support herself and her elderly parents, and slowly started to create a new normal for herself.
In the past months, Natasha's body has become resistant to her Gleevec treatment. At this point in time, Natasha has two treatment options:
1. Treatment with Ponatinib - a drug which is a tyrosine kinase receptor inhibitor. It is not available in India, and would cost her an average of 500,000 INR (approximately $7,000) per month for the rest of her life.
2. A bone marrow transplant, which will leave her bedridden for the next 3-5 months, and intense home-recovery for at least one year. The post-infusion process consists of a long list of complications that could occur, and will also require her to have her blood tested twice a week for 4-6 months, along with other checkups that would monitor her recovery process.
Natasha felt hopeless until new DNA testing found a donor with a perfect DNA match -- her brother. It is a God-given opportunity for her to have a chance at life, and it would be heartbreaking if we were to loose her after all these years of her struggle, simply because she didn't have the ability to pay for her life-saving procedure.
Included in this appeal are a couple of pictures of Natasha, so that you may see her sweetness, her strength, and her vulnerability. If you feel drawn to donating any amount big or small, all and any of it will be received with immense gratitude.
You can make a donation here, or help us spread the word to help save the life of our friend Natasha.
Thank you all, be safe, be blessed.
Fundraising team (2)
Menka Soni
Organizer
Redmond, WA
Ravishing Women
Registered nonprofit
Donations are typically 100% tax deductible in the US.
Nidhi Mehta
Team member
