Help Angelina Afford Her Surgery

About a year ago our daughter Angelina started experiencing symptoms of acid reflux. She would complain about chest pain and having a hard time swallowing food. She would complain that food would come back and sometimes she would vomit. She saw her doctor in July 2023 who diagnosed her as having GERD (Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease) and prescribed her medication to help alleviate her symptoms. As the months went on she continued to get worse as the medications were not really helping her.

Angelina was rushed to the emergency room on 01/26/2024 as she was unable to swallow food or liquids. Two CT Scans were done and they found a small obstruction in her esophagus and she was also suffering from aspiration pneumonia. She was given IV antibiotics and then was released as the doctor stated it was not emergent enough as she was able to tolerate her saliva. They also prescribed her medications to treat GERD and stated she may have Dysphagia. This was a rural hospital near her university and they did not have a gastroenterologist and they would not transport her to a bigger hospital as we requested. The doctor recommended we take her out of school and bring her home. So they sent us home and stated she needed an EGD immediately. It was a Friday night and we were unable to speak with her Gastroenterologist. We called the after hours number several times over that weekend to only be hung up on by the answering service and they would not help us in any way. On the morning of 01/29/2024 we left a message with the Gastroenterologist office.

On Monday 01/29/2024 in the afternoon, she was rushed to a different hospital near home as she was unable to even tolerate her own saliva and she could not even tolerate the liquid diet the previous hospital had recommended. Again, her symptoms were dismissed as GERD and she was sent home. It was heart breaking to see her so upset. She was starving and these hospitals turned her away. We felt defeated at this point as we were trying to get our daughter help and her symptoms kept being dismissed as GERD.

Finally, on Tuesday 1/30/2024 her gastroenterologist called and scheduled and EGD for the next day. The EGD was performed on 1/31/2024 and it was found the Angelina does not have GERD as previous doctors had stated but they suspected Achalasia and needs surgery. The doctors are not sure what causes Achalasia. Achalasia is a rare swallowing disorder that effects the esophagus. In people with Achalasia, the esophagus muscles do not contract properly and do not help propel food down toward the stomach. The esophagus narrows as well as the muscles do not expand, which causes food to get stuck in her esophagus and causes all the symptoms Angelina was experiencing. Most people with Achalasia are misdiagnosed with GERD as it presents with the same symptoms as GERD. The doctor did attempt to “stretch” that portion of the esophagus however, it was a temporary fix and only helped her for 1 day. She needs to have surgery to open her esophagus. And the “obstruction” that was seen on the CT Scans was actually food stuck in her esophagus. The doctor removed the food during the EGD.

On 02/09/2024 Angelina had a manometry test completed. A camera was put through her nose and down to her stomach through the esophagus. They had her drink water during the test to see if the muscles in her esophagus would contract and move the water to her stomach. The test confirmed that her esophagus muscles are not working and the stomach flap that allows food into her stomach was not working as well.

Angelina saw the surgeon on 02/13/2024 who confirmed the diagnoses of Achalasia. The surgeon stated she would need a Heller Myotomy procedure and the stomach flap will also need to be repaired. Surgery is scheduled for 02/23/2024 and the out of pocket cost for the surgery is $2,409. This does not include the hospital charges and the anesthesiologist costs. She will need to stay overnight after the procedure.

For those of you who know Angelina know she is the most hardworking, caring person and does not deserve to go through this. She works 2 part time jobs while going to college and is also the marketing manager of her Sorority Tri-Sigma. She was forced to leave college and come home for a few weeks as she was unable to work and go to school due to her being too weak as she was not able to eat a regular diet. She has lost 30 pounds within the last few months. The doctors have put her on a liquid diet. She still struggles swallowing liquids however, she has been able to stop the weight loss for now. It takes her about an hour or two to drink 1 Ensure shake but she makes sure she is getting the nutrients she needs. Even with all this going on she was still continuing to do all her school work as she has stayed in touched with her professors the entire time. She is determined to stay in school while going through all of this. She also continued to be active in the Sorority through video calls.

Angelina returned to college after seeing the surgeon as she is feeling a little better and she wants to continue to work, go to class and participate in her Sorority until she has surgery. She will live with this condition for the rest of her life. It can be treated but not cured and she will have to continue to see a gastroenterologist yearly and have an EGD done every few years.

Angelina has health insurance but the out of pocket costs are high. With all the emergency room visits, doctor visits, tests and now the cost of surgery it has been really expensive. We are asking for donations to help pay her medical expenses and her bills while she recovers as she does not have paid sick leave from either of her jobs. Any little bit will help and we really appreciate you all helping her and supporting her while she goes through this. If you aren’t able to donate, please share.