Help Kyle Fund Spinal Surgery
Kyle MacLean, family, and friends are fundraising for international surgery for rare medical conditions not covered by Canada or Nova Scotia MSI. Kyle is the son of Vernon Maclean (Eileen) and Joanne Lawrence - Phalen (John)
Kyle has Generalized Connective Tissue Disorder. As a result of this disorder, he has complications of Occult Tethered Cord and Atlanto-axial instability. Both are spinal cord injuries that create debilitating neurological problems. Kyle has consulted with doctors in Montreal, Vancouver and Halifax. In order to get these diagnoses however, he had many teleconferences and online appointments with doctors in the USA and India. They are not conditions that are presently treated in Canada and there are no doctors or researchers here that are able to help Kyle with overcoming these diagnoses. For the solution that Kyle needs, he must go abroad.
The solution for both complications is surgery. For Occult Tethered Cord, surgery is recommended by Dr. Petra Klinge of Rhode Island, USA, one of the leading neurologists in her field. She advised it is very likely that Kyle and his spine will suffer permanent damage without surgical intervention. The longer we wait, the worse it could be.
Down the road, spinal fusion surgery for an unstable Atlanto-Axial joint is deemed necessary by multiple world-class neurosurgeons (Dr. Neill Wright, USA, and Dr. Atul Goel, India) and Canadian chiropractor Sasha Blaskovich. The tethered cord surgery was recommended to be done first, so that is what we are fundraising for now. The total cost of these surgeries is upwards of $150,000.00 CAD. We are trying to fundraise as much as we can to help Kyle avoid a lifetime spent in medical debt.
Kyle played hockey often, hiked, completed university with a Public Health Degree, and was working to save up money for traveling. Since 2018, his quality of life has rapidly declined. Currently, he is unable to partake in the sports he loves, many activities with friends, and he is unable to work or build a career. After surgery, he should be able to get back to work, activities, and making up time for the lost years of his twenties. While Kyle will always live with Generalized Connective Tissues Disorder, his complications are largely curable with surgery and we know he has brighter days ahead!
