Note: Bitik Emlaelu and Blen Ayele are organizing this fundraiser on behalf of Sador Dawit Mulugeta.

Help us save Sador Dawit Mulugeta

Thursday, June 27th, 2017 was the day that Sador Dawit Mulugeta found out that she have cancer. Sador is the second eldest of 4 kids, a young lawyer, who graduated from Bahir Dar's Law school in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia. She was a few months shy of her 28th birthday, when she went to the hospital, in Addis Ababa, where she resides, complaining of a minor abdominal discomfort.

 
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

After ultrasound and CT scan examinations, Doctors discovered mass in her mid-gut and liver and thought it might be neuro endocrine tumor. They advised Sador to have biopsy done as soon as possible.



Bangkok, Thailand

Per the doctors' advice, Sador immediately travelled to Bangkok, Thailand to get examined and get a biopsy done. The doctors at the Bangkok hospital decided she undergo surgery to remove the mass found in her mid-gut as well as cholecystectomy and do a biopsy of the liver.

Sador was diagnosed with Neuroendocrine Tumor (NET), a rare and slow growing cancer that starts in the lining of the digestive tract.

1. The cost of the surgery was 50,000 USD.
2. In addition, they started her on an injection, once a month: Sandostatin Lar 30mg. The cost of 1 injection was 1,500 USD. She ended up paying for 5 injections because she needed to continue with her injections when she went back to Addis Ababa. The total cost for the injections was 7,500 USD.
3. Sador stayed in Bangkok for 2 months. Although she stayed with family, she still had some expenses to cover like food, transportation and hospital visits.
4. The total cost on her first trip exceeded 65,000 USD.

Her immediate family (her mother & siblings) along with some of her relatives were able to raise the money needed for her first trip. Although the battle was just starting and it was obvious that more money would be needed later, they were able to liquidate some of their assets to pay for the procedures and her trip.


Sador went back to Bangkok for check up and evaluation twice in the next 6 months. Each time they would order her to continue with her injections. However, it looked like the medicine, while seeming to slow the tumor down some, was not stopping the cancer from growing.

1. On the 2 additional trips to Bangkok, Sador had to pay for additional injections: 6 injections for a total of 9,000 USD.
2. She also had to pay for her trips, hospital visits and procedures in excess of 20,000 USD.
3.  Her total expenses on her 2 additional trips exceeded 30,000 USD.

Her immediate family, relatives and friends came together again to help raise money for her 2 trips.

After all of this, the cancer was still advancing and it looked like she needed to try something more aggressive and different. After a year of going back and forth to Bangkok, one of her cousins told her about a cancer research institute in Lisbon, Portugal, called Champalimaud Cancer Research Institute. 

After sending them her medical records, Champalimaud Cancer Research Institute agreed to see her. They got her in touch with an organization that was willing to help her with the costs: Ion Care. Ion Care, in turn, agreed to help pay her medical expenses up to 60,000 USD. Sador was still responsible for her travel, lodgings and food expenses. Even though money was tight for our family at this stage, this was an opportunity we could not miss: An answer to our prayers!



Lisbon, Portugal  

 In August 2018, Sador travelled to Lisbon, Portugal. After examining her, the Doctors at the Cancer research institute concluded that, unfortunately, the cancer has progressed to stage 3. They switched her medication from Sandostatin Lar to Landreotide 120 mg every 30 day. The institution gave her 4 injections to take back home.

Even though her medical expenses and medications were being covered by Ion Care, Sador ended up spending around 7,000 Euros for her first trip to Lisbon (for lodgings, travel and food).

Sador went back to Lisbon for a follow up in January 2019. The examination showed no significant change in the tumor and her symptom was still not controlled which showed clinical progression of the disease. The doctors recommended she start PRRT with Luthecium (Peptide receptor radionuclide therapy), a new medication approved in 2018 by the FDA.

The PRRT was available in Lisbon, but the cost of the medicine for an international patient was 65,000 Euros per injection! She would need to undergo the PRRT once every 2 months. Unfortunately, Ion Care couldn’t cover the cost because by that time, she had already finished the allotted 60,000 USD that Ion Care had approved her for and the cost for the therapy was just too expensive for them to cover. She was forced to go back home.

It was decided that Sador, at least, continues with the Landreotide 120 mg every 30 day. At this point, she had to pay for the 4 month worth of injections out of pocket along with her lodgings, travel and food expenses. It came up to over 15,000 Euros.

For her 2 trips to Lisbon Sador’s family and friends had to raise around 21,000 Euros. We felt so hopeless and depleted and prayed for a miracle everyday!



Delhi, India

In June of 2019, through a family friend, Sador heard of Max hospital in Delhi. When she contacted them, they told her that they have the PRRT treatment in their hospital. Their price was much more manageable: One injection costs about 6,500 USD. This of course did not include hospital examination or any other procedures. Moreover, Sador will have to cover lodgings, travel and food costs herself like usual.

In June 2019, Sador went to Delhi, India to start the treatment. She stayed 1 month. She received her first PRRT injection.

1. Her injection cost 6,500 USD
2. In addition, her travel, lodgings, hospital visits and food cost around 5,000 USD
3.  Her total cost for her first trip to Delhi was around 12,000 USD


Present Situation

Sador is getting ready to go to India for her second treatment. She is waiting for the medication to be ordered from Germany by the Hospital. For this trip as well as all of her prior trips, her family and friends were able to come to her aid and raise the money needed.

However, Sador will have to go to go back to India every 2 months for the next 2 years. Family and friends are having a hard time raising more money. We need your help! Sador needs to raise money to go back to India to receive her 3rd injection and the injections thereafter. Please help us raise enough money to continue with her treatments.

1. She will need injections every 2 months for, at least, the next 2 years: 1 injection costs 6,500 USD
2. She will also need to cover her lodgings, plane ticket and food expenses as well as any expenses arising from hospital visits and/or any other needed medical treatments and tests: her additional cost per trip will roughly be anywhere between 5,000 USD to 10,000 USD depending on her condition
3. In total Sador will need anywhere between 11,500 USD to 16,500 USD every 2 months for the next 2 years.



What price would you pay to save a loved one? How hard would you fight to save their lives?

My name is Bitik Emlaelu. Sador Dawit is my beloved little cousin. I have watched her grow into a beautiful soul who enjoys life to the fullest. In the last couple of years, while her family and friends struggled to comprehend what was happening to her, I’ve watched her deal with her illness and come to terms with it. Her inner strength and beauty, her love for life, leaves me in awe of her. She is one of the strongest people I know. She has so much to live for. I beg you to please help us in this fight for her life! Any contribution you can manage will get us one step closer to our goal.




My name is Blen Ayele. Sador is my childhood friend since the first grade. The last two years has been very tough seeing my beloved friend fight for her life at such a young age. Regardless of the storm she went through, she lives her life to the fullest and always has the biggest smile in the room. Her positive attitude and gratitude is infectious; gives hope to everyone around her. She still enjoys listening to music, reading, playing ground tennis, basketball and her avid social life just like the old days. Our hope and prayer is to help our friend heal and see her continue to live a healthy, happy life fulfilling her dreams of providing legal aid to women!



Since Sador lives in Ethiopia, we (Bitik Emlaelu & Blen Ayele) started a gofundme account in her name, here in the United States. 100% of the money we raise will be transferred to Sador Dawit in her account in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia or directly transferred to the Hospital in Dehli where she is receiving her treatment, in order to help pay for her medical expenses and her travel, lodgings and food costs. No amount is too small! Please help! Thank you and God bless you!