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Hello Friends and Family,
I am writing today in hope that you are all well.
Unfortunately, as it happens in life, one of our family members is not well. Our brother, Juan (he goes by his nickname “Aris”) was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic Syndrome(s). We had previously never heard of these syndromes and knew absolutely nothing about them. MDS has not been reported for very long here in the United States. In recent years, though, it has been reported that there are as many as 200,000 cases each year.
What is MDS? MDS refers to a group of similar blood disorders.
There are 3 different cell types in our blood, “Red Cells”, “White Cells” and “Platelets”. The syndromes can be a disorder, lack of and/or abnormality of 1 -3 of these cells. The bone marrow is unable to provide enough normal blood cells, white cells or platelets in the circulation and produces cells that are misshapen/abnormal and not fully mature. This is considered by the medical community as having Blood Cancer.
Our brother Aris is lacking in red blood cells and the few that his bone marrow is producing are misshapen. In time he could develop Acute Myelogenous Leukemia, an extremely serious illness.
So, today my sisters Patty, Laura and I are asking for your help. Our brother lives in Mexico City and unfortunately the medicine and medical help that can potentially save his life are here in the United States (some here in California). So he is coming to Los Angeles.
There are several medical institutions that can help our brother Aris. Through the MDS Foundation we were very fortunate to meet and have conversations with two magnificent Hematologists that have the amazing amount of knowledge and the means to help Aris live a longer life with MDS.
While this is a miracle, it’s an expensive miracle. In the beginning of March, our brother will start seeing doctors here at USC and will hopefully get the medicine, therapy and maybe even a bone marrow or stem cell transplant that he so desperately needs.
Aris doesn’t have insurance here so everything will be out of pocket. As you know, doctor’s consultations, medicine, lab work and the possibility of Bone Marrow or Stem Cell transplants will run into the thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars. My sisters Patty, Laura and I are looking into patient advocacy groups that might be able to help. I’m also asking for your help with any small contribution. If you can help we will be eternally grateful. If you can’t please don’t feel bad, say a prayer or two for our brother. Prayers are a huge help.
Thank you in advance for anything you can do.
Sincerely,
Sylvia Marquez-Jacobowitz, Patty Castellanos & Laura Marquez
I am writing today in hope that you are all well.
Unfortunately, as it happens in life, one of our family members is not well. Our brother, Juan (he goes by his nickname “Aris”) was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic Syndrome(s). We had previously never heard of these syndromes and knew absolutely nothing about them. MDS has not been reported for very long here in the United States. In recent years, though, it has been reported that there are as many as 200,000 cases each year.
What is MDS? MDS refers to a group of similar blood disorders.
There are 3 different cell types in our blood, “Red Cells”, “White Cells” and “Platelets”. The syndromes can be a disorder, lack of and/or abnormality of 1 -3 of these cells. The bone marrow is unable to provide enough normal blood cells, white cells or platelets in the circulation and produces cells that are misshapen/abnormal and not fully mature. This is considered by the medical community as having Blood Cancer.
Our brother Aris is lacking in red blood cells and the few that his bone marrow is producing are misshapen. In time he could develop Acute Myelogenous Leukemia, an extremely serious illness.
So, today my sisters Patty, Laura and I are asking for your help. Our brother lives in Mexico City and unfortunately the medicine and medical help that can potentially save his life are here in the United States (some here in California). So he is coming to Los Angeles.
There are several medical institutions that can help our brother Aris. Through the MDS Foundation we were very fortunate to meet and have conversations with two magnificent Hematologists that have the amazing amount of knowledge and the means to help Aris live a longer life with MDS.
While this is a miracle, it’s an expensive miracle. In the beginning of March, our brother will start seeing doctors here at USC and will hopefully get the medicine, therapy and maybe even a bone marrow or stem cell transplant that he so desperately needs.
Aris doesn’t have insurance here so everything will be out of pocket. As you know, doctor’s consultations, medicine, lab work and the possibility of Bone Marrow or Stem Cell transplants will run into the thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars. My sisters Patty, Laura and I are looking into patient advocacy groups that might be able to help. I’m also asking for your help with any small contribution. If you can help we will be eternally grateful. If you can’t please don’t feel bad, say a prayer or two for our brother. Prayers are a huge help.
Thank you in advance for anything you can do.
Sincerely,
Sylvia Marquez-Jacobowitz, Patty Castellanos & Laura Marquez