Donate to help Melbourne mum Sarah fight her AVM battle

Our dear friend Sarah has been recently diagnosed with a large arteriovenous malformation (AVM), a rare, life-threatening vascular condition. AVMs can lead to disability, pain, deformities, uncontrolled bleeding and heart failure.

Sarah’s AVM is in her tongue, floor of mouth and under her chin, an area that is very complex to treat.

Although Sarah has experienced symptoms such as tongue bleeds for many years, her pregnancy four years ago seems to have triggered the growth of her AVM.

A breakthrough, curative treatment is now available to Sarah… but it is only offered in Milan, Italy.

We are raising funds to help Sarah go to Milan to have this surgery. This is Sarah’s best chance to live a full life alongside her partner Alex and four-year-old son, Oliver.

Sarah has touched the lives of many people through her work in fitness, her roles in various charities and her work with children in foster care.

If you are able to give anything, small or large, to help Sarah and her family afford this vital surgery, it will be greatly appreciated.

About arteriovenous malformations

Present at birth, an AVM is a vascular abnormality that occurs when arteries and veins form direct connections, causing blood to bypass capillary beds. Over time, more and more of these connections form, creating a tangled mass of blood vessels.

The AVM “steals” blood – and therefore oxygen – from the surrounding tissues, which causes healthy cells to die. This leads to pain, infections, tissue death and functional impairments. An AVM in the tongue and mouth can cause difficulties with speech and swallowing, even breathing.

As the AVM grows, the pressure on the blood vessels increases. Massive – even fatal – haemorrhages can occur.

Complete eradication of the AVM is the only “cure.”

However, surgical excision would mean amputating most of Sarah’s tongue and removing part of her face. This would severely impact her ability to speak and swallow, and leave her deformed.

Instead doctors in Melbourne are offering embolisation treatments to shrink Sarah’s AVM. These treatments need to be repeated as the AVM grows again, and they carry severe risks and side effects.

The solution

A new curative treatment for complex high flow AVMs in the face and neck is now being offered in Italy, by one of the world’s top facial surgeons who specialises in vascular malformations.

This life-altering treatment is Modified Electrosclerotherapy, with a chemo drug called bleomycin. All going well, Sarah’s surgery will involve 24 hours in ICU, and a further week in hospital. She will need to stay in Milan for a few weeks after being discharged from hospital.

It is likely Sarah will need three surgeries, each a few months apart, to ensure the AVM is completely obliterated so it can’t regrow.

Associated costs

The cost of these surgeries and associated expenses is estimated to be well over $400,000. This includes:

- surgeons’ fees

- anaesthesiologist fees

- inpatient hospital fees

- medication

- flights for Sarah, Alex and Ollie

- accommodation in Milan after Sarah has been discharged from hospital, and other costs associated with staying there, such as car hire

- support for the family while Alex takes time off work to care for Sarah and Ollie while she recovers.

Anything you can contribute towards these costs is greatly appreciated. Thank you so much for your support.

https://birthmark.org/birthmark/arteriovenous-malformation/