Freddy Fights MS! (HSCT)

This is a difficult post to write, as anyone who knows my husband and myself would understand. We are a strong willed self reliant family with a “we can handle it all” attitude, but the time to ask for help is here.

Freddy (my husband) has silently suffered from Ms for over 20 years. For those who don’t know what Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is, it is a disabling disease of the brain and spinal cord. For MS sufferers, the immune system attacks the protective sheath (myelin) that covers nerve fibres and disrupts the flow of information between the brain and body. This results in permanent muscle and nerve damage, extreme pain, fatigue and sadly much worse.

In fact, when this post is released, many friends may be shocked to hear this is what he suffers silently from, even though they have seen the loss of balance, falls and grimaces of pain through the years as he pushes to work every day to provide for his family with a smile on his face. He keeps this sad diagnosis to himself.

This alone is a testament to how strong willed Freddy is. Unfortunately MS does not care how strong anyone is …we can no longer run or hide from the truth. MS has progressed to the point where he is no longer able to complete daily functions and spends most of his time in extreme pain. He has lost vision in one eye, suffers from numbness and loss of cognitive function, strength to walk, extreme fatigue and numerous other issues that go along with having multiple lesions along his spinal cord and brain. Even simple joys such as walking on grass holding hands with our kids is impossible due to his extreme loss of balance. We have tried to keep it at bay for many years. We have tried different medications, vitamins, therapy and now lifestyle modifications. We are losing the fight and we fear we may lose his ability to walk at all soon. But HE IS A FIGHTER! He refuses to give up the ability to be a father, husband and provider without a fight.

Please help us fight…

We have found a treatment called Haematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (HSCT). This treatment is the only one of its kind out there and the only one that’s aim is to halt the disease in its tracks. This is an intense chemotherapy treatment (four chemotherapy infusions) aimed to stop the damage that MS causes by completely wiping out and regrowing his immune system using stem cells from his bone marrow. This treatment is at least 28 days long. This treatment is not available in the United States for his type of MS. We are looking to pay privately for this treatment at Clinica Ruiz, in Mexico. The cost of receiving treatment in Mexico is not covered by our American insurance.

We are trying to raise $80,000 to cover the cost of the procedure, travel expenses and the cost of living while he is recovering.

Please don’t think we have come to this decision lightly as it is a complicated, expensive procedure that comes with its own set of risks, however we all feel his rapidly declining quality of life requires us to take a chance at a better future than what will surely happen to him if he does not get this procedure. Time is critical as his MS is progressing quickly and he needs to have this done as soon as possible for the best final result.

Please help our girls have a chance to hold their dad's hand while he walks beside them and help me have a brighter future with my love.

Please consider donating.

Thank you so very much

The Rafidi Family

#FreddyfightsMS