Help Papa Dave Get Lifesaving Treatment

We are reaching out to you for help for our Dad, Dave Peterson or as many of you know him as "Papa Dave". He has been diagnosed with one of the rarest malignancies known in the world, Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD). There have only been less than 800 cases ever diagnosed in the world, so the only treatment available is chemotherapy that is approved for other blood cancers. This is a rare blood disorder where you begin to make too many white blood cells called histocytes that affect multiple organs and eventually will cause multiple organ failure. He is only 64 years old, he is a loving husband to his wife Laurie & an amazing father to his 6 children, a great brother to his 3 siblings, a wonderful "Papa" to his 10 grandchildren and a dear and loyal friend to many people here in the Palm Desert area. His disease has progressed since his diagnosis 4 years ago, and now he has been referred to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota, this is one of the only medical institutions in the world that can treat adults with this disease. He is scheduled to be seen the week of October 21st. He has already lost a kidney, his aorta is now severely impacted, and he has a pleural effusion that makes it very difficult to breathe, and it is increasingly becoming more and more difficult to work every day. Unfortunately, the Mayo Clinic is not in his network, so they are asking for a co-pay up front. We are devastated to see what our Dad is going through and therefore, we kindly ask for any support you can provide, so that the financial impact does not become worse than the disease. We kindly ask you to keep our Dad in your prayers and for any support you can provide to help him get the best possible medical care. A trust account has been set up under his name and our Aunt Caryn Peterson (trustee) where donated funds will be deposited. All donations will strictly pay for his medical care. We thank you in advance for your love and support.