Help Mike kick MS
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One day, around the time I was about to graduate college, I started to lose vision in my right eye. It's not that things were blurry - I had dark areas of vision. It got progressively worse over the course of a week until I couldn't see anything out of that eye. I went to an Ophthalmologist and was diagnosed with Optic Neuritis, which is inflammation of the optic nerve. He referred me to a neurologist, who after a battery of tests, diagnosed me with Multiple Sclerosis. A year later, the exact same thing happened in my other eye. In both cases, I fully regained my sight with a course of high-dose steroids.
Multiple Sclerosis is an autoimmune disease in which your body attacks the protective myelin coating of your nerves, which causes scarring (sclerosis) on your nerves. This makes it hard for signals to get through the nerves that tell your body to move. The symptoms one experiences varies widely from person to person, depending on which nerves are affected. Common symptoms include tingling/numbness, double vision, lack of coordination, fatigue, dizziness, muscle spasms/stiff muscles, and more. Many people degrade to the point of losing the ability to walk.
I have seen first-hand the devastating toll MS can take. My grandmother had MS and deteriorated to the point of not being able to walk or even feed herself. Her mental capacity got so bad that she would ask every 15 minutes who I was. It was similar to an Alzheimer's patient but without mobility. I don't want to end up that way.
Most of the current disease modifying drugs slow progression, but none of them stop it. The good news is that there is a treatment that can HALT MS, and in some cases reverse symptoms you've accumulated. It's called Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). This is the only treatment proven to stop disease progression in 80%+ of people . There are only a few places in the US to have this procedure done, but they have strict inclusion criteria that I don't meet (not to mention a cost between $150k-$200k). Instead, I'm going to travel to Moscow, Russia to have HSCT. They have the most experience providing HSCT for MS patients and have a very good track record. I will be in the hospital for a month while receiving treatment. The treatment involves collecting your own stem cells from your blood, receiving chemo therapy, then receiving your stem cells back. The chemo "ablates" (kills) your immune system and resets it. The stem cells help to rebuild your immune system so that you're not left without an immune system any longer than necessary.
HSCT is most effective earlier in the disease progression. It's also crucial to receive treatment before acquiring any more permanent disease symptoms.
I'm raising $50,000, all of which will go to cover the cost of the treatment. This doesn't include transportation or the loss of income I will experience.
This treatment will allow me stay mobile, play with my kids, experience life without disability, and enable me to not be a burden on my family and friends. I've never been good at asking for help, but here I am. Will you help me eradicate my MS?
Multiple Sclerosis is an autoimmune disease in which your body attacks the protective myelin coating of your nerves, which causes scarring (sclerosis) on your nerves. This makes it hard for signals to get through the nerves that tell your body to move. The symptoms one experiences varies widely from person to person, depending on which nerves are affected. Common symptoms include tingling/numbness, double vision, lack of coordination, fatigue, dizziness, muscle spasms/stiff muscles, and more. Many people degrade to the point of losing the ability to walk.
I have seen first-hand the devastating toll MS can take. My grandmother had MS and deteriorated to the point of not being able to walk or even feed herself. Her mental capacity got so bad that she would ask every 15 minutes who I was. It was similar to an Alzheimer's patient but without mobility. I don't want to end up that way.
Most of the current disease modifying drugs slow progression, but none of them stop it. The good news is that there is a treatment that can HALT MS, and in some cases reverse symptoms you've accumulated. It's called Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). This is the only treatment proven to stop disease progression in 80%+ of people . There are only a few places in the US to have this procedure done, but they have strict inclusion criteria that I don't meet (not to mention a cost between $150k-$200k). Instead, I'm going to travel to Moscow, Russia to have HSCT. They have the most experience providing HSCT for MS patients and have a very good track record. I will be in the hospital for a month while receiving treatment. The treatment involves collecting your own stem cells from your blood, receiving chemo therapy, then receiving your stem cells back. The chemo "ablates" (kills) your immune system and resets it. The stem cells help to rebuild your immune system so that you're not left without an immune system any longer than necessary.
HSCT is most effective earlier in the disease progression. It's also crucial to receive treatment before acquiring any more permanent disease symptoms.
I'm raising $50,000, all of which will go to cover the cost of the treatment. This doesn't include transportation or the loss of income I will experience.
This treatment will allow me stay mobile, play with my kids, experience life without disability, and enable me to not be a burden on my family and friends. I've never been good at asking for help, but here I am. Will you help me eradicate my MS?
Organizer
Mike Rampanelli
Organizer
Grand Rapids, MI
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