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Baby Millie Rae Emergency Medical Expenses (CDH)

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Baby Millie Rae Emergency Medical Expenses (CDH)
Seth and Sonya Kamphaus expect to welcome a beautiful baby girl, Millie Rae, to the world in October 2023. They are eager to have a daughter added to their family, and their three-year-old son Oakley is excited to become a big brother.

At a routine ultrasound checkup, baby Millie was suspected to have a series of masses on her lung. They were referred to Maternal-fetal medicine and considered high-risk. Sonya and the baby were then given another ultrasound. At this point, Millie was diagnosed with a suspected congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH), which has a life expectancy of as low as 15%. It was determined that baby Millie had a left-sided CDH, or what is more commonly referred to as a “hole” or hernia, on the left side of the diaphragm. This hole has allowed the organs that are supposed to be in her abdomen to move up into her chest cavity, where her heart and lungs are supposed to be. The doctors discovered that the shifting of her organs resulted in her heart being pushed to the right side of her body and her lungs being restricted, stunting their growth. They were told that her case seemed severe and that CDH is rare and occurs in roughly 1 of 3500 births inside the US. They were told that this diagnosis would require surgery and treatment out of state at a specialty hospital.

They were given four referrals to various states to determine where they wanted to get Millie's care. They had the choice of Houston, Texas, St. Petersburg, Florida, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Children's Hospital of Cincinnati, Ohio (one of the hospitals that do experimental surgery to help promote lung growth in utero). Seth, Sonya, and Oakley planned their trip to Cincinnati first and spent a week conducting testing and meeting with the CDH team. During this time, they found out that Millie had a moderate case of CDH and wouldn't be a candidate for the experimental surgery. They were told to relocate to the area by 32 weeks to be closely monitored. Millie will require surgery shortly after birth to move the displaced organs to their appropriate place and to repair the hernia. There are still many unknowns to follow, and they were advised that Millie may also require a procedure called ECMO (a machine that acts as an artificial set of lungs and heart to allow hers to continue growing). They have been told to expect a 4 - 6 month recovery in the NICU after her birth and to plan on being in Ohio for a while.

The short relocation notice stresses the family about what the future holds. Seth is an active-duty military member and serves in the Marine Corps. The family is currently stationed in Pensacola, Florida, and must move over 700 miles with extremely short notice (less than two weeks). It is still up in the air if the Marines are going to provide resources to help the family move to Ohio, but currently, all of the expenses are being covered directly by the family. This move will require moving costs, storage fees, travel expenses, housing uncertainty, medical bills, and care of their son Oakley all while dealing with the unknown of how long they will be displaced in Ohio.

We ask for your help to reduce the stress the Kamphaus family faces during this trying time. Any assistance you can provide will lessen the load on Seth and Sonya so they can focus on baby Millie and Oakley. Thank you for your help and prayers.
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Donations 

  • Rachel Turton
    • $45
    • 1 yr
  • Anonymous
    • $50
    • 1 yr
  • Kimberly Copley
    • $40
    • 1 yr
  • Anonymous
    • $1,000
    • 1 yr
  • Gabriela Hernandez
    • $50
    • 1 yr
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Organizer and beneficiary

Dallas Maltby
Organizer
Key West, FL
Seth Kamphaus
Beneficiary

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