Alyssa Campbell (Clarke) new Heart

Hi my name is CherylAnn Caspersen and I here to support my friends Wanda Maher and her Daughter Alyssa fundraise to get Alyssa to Toronto so that Alyssa can be assessed for a new heart . Here is their story :

Hello ,my name is Wanda Maher and I am the mother of an incredibly brave 21 year old daughter Alyssa Clarke. We live in Moncton, New Brunswick. Alyssa, from the moment she was born has been the light of our lives and has faced many challenges .

When she was only a few months old she was diagnosed with Leukemia and the chemotherapy that was used to save her life unbeknown to us damaged her heart and at the age of 8 she went into heart failure. From that moment on our lives centered around Alyssa and her medical needs, at the age of 11 she was airlifted from Halifax to Toronto Sick Kids hospital for evaluation. Shortly after that she was listed for a heart transplant .Alyssa and I relocated to Toronto and her father would fly in to visit when he could as her had to keep working to support our family. While waiting for her new heart , she endured several heart procedures and the last one was when she was hooked up to a Berlin heart , which is a massive machine that is a mechanical heart. It was needed to keep her alive until a new heart could be found. In August of 2013,a very courageous and loving family made the difficult choice to donate their child’s organ and Alyssa was the recipient of her perfect match. What a blessing that was and there are no words for how grateful we are for Alyssa's second chance at a life.

Since her transplant,Alyssa blossomed health wise, she was able to take up dancing again. She was finally able to live her life . She would fly back to Toronto for yearly evaluations and checkups which included a heart biopsy to check the status of the transplant and everything came back wonderfully. She graduated high school and started post secondary going to school to study to be a veterinarian technician . She got a chance to meet and fall in love with her fiancé Thomas .

Things were going wonderfully until 2021, when Alyssa started feeling tired easily and her anti rejection medications were not doing the job. School was no longer an option , she had to drop out . She was showing signs of heart failure. This is from a condition considered chronic rejection that happens in some transplant patients. Cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) is a condition that affects transplanted hearts. It causes the blood vessels supplying blood to the heart muscle itself to become narrowed and eventually blocked.

Unfortunately due to her size and age , the hospital in Halifax neither has the expertise or knowledge on how to treat Alyssa. They refused to even evaluate her for transplant which leaves her with no other options , So we knew we needed a second opinion from the heart transplant specialists at Toronto General Hospital .Update :

Over the past 8 months Alyssa has been assessed by the specialists at Toronto General and we have been told that she will put put on the transplant list by the end of May .

Since starting this GoFundMe me Alyssa’s life has changed . In January Alyssa married the love of her life and her rock these past few years Thomas Campbell . Together they will need to relocate to Toronto while they await her new heart . A new heart is her only option 

All Ayssa wants is another fighting chance at having a life she can only dream of . There are so many dreams she wants to fulfill, she wants to live a long life with Thomas and go back to school to work with the animals she loves.

She needs your help to do this . The money raised will be used to help with travel, accommodation and food. When she gets listed she will have to relocate to Toronto to wait. She will require follow up in Toronto after transplant and any other follow up because they are the best at what they do. Alyssa deserves the best. As her mother, that’s what I’m fighting for . We are eternally grateful for any support you can give us.

Now a message from Alyssa : 

Hi My name is Alyssa Clarke now Campbell, I just married the love of my life. I want to share my story. When I was a baby I was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic lukemia at eight months old. My parents and I moved away from my home to stay at the IWK, where we stayed for four months for me to start a long journey of a year long of High dose chemo. With the support of my parents I came through and continued to grow. When I was 3 years old, my parents learned that there was damage done ot my heart from a chemo medication, it damaged the heart muscle. They were told that I probably wouldn't have any issues until way later in life if any. But at 9 years old I went into heart failure and it was managed with medications until I was 11. Then the doctors from the IKW transferred me to Toronto Sick Kids Hospital. We stayed here for 10 months, I lived in hospital for 8 months on a berlin heart pump while I waited for my new heart. Once transplanted in August of 2013, we returned home late that fall. Once home I was able to go  back to school, dance and did things a normal kid did. This was the first time in as long as I could remember that I felt good. I graduated high school, got my first job and went to college to be a vet tech, but that was short lived. As I was to find out in Aug of 2021 that I was in heart failure again, I had developed a coronary artery disease that is seen in transplant patients, it is CAV. I had a rough fall that year as I suffered a cardiac arrest during a procedure in Halifax, I had to drop out of school and try to recover. SInce that time I have been in and out of hospital and have asked for a second oppion in Toronto to see about getting my second transplant another chance of a healthy life where I can do the the things I love again. We have made so far three trips to toronto and another trip soon. Once I am listed we will have to relocate to Toronto while I wait for my new heart. I am not able to work, and the financial strain is a constant worry. I am unable to get any type of assiatance. We would greatly apppreciate if anyone can finaincially help me along my journey. Any size donantion counts. If you are unable to donate please share my story. I am looking  forward  to a life after transplant so I can return to school and do the things I love and want to do. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Love Alyssa Campbell (formerly  Clarke :)