- D
- J
- M
Janice Malusky is a retired Air Force civil servant who suffered a stroke in March of 2019. As a result of the stroke, Janice has been diagnosed with a very rare brain condition called "chronic thalamic pain syndrome." Various physicians have concluded that the only recommended option for a cure for Janice is High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU).
Janice was a health-conscious and vibrant 68 year-old before the stroke. She was on no medications, and maintained a healthy lifestyle of hiking, pickle ball, and daily exercise workouts. She is a very generous and giving person. She and her sister were running a children's music program in the Appalachian region that she would love to continue.
For the entire year since the stroke, Janice has been in extreme pain. Specifically, Janice's thalamus was severely damaged by the stroke, and her thalamus now falsely registers any skin touch as extreme pain (allodynia). She also experiences severe burning, a false sense of muscle cramping on the left half side of the body, and various areas of her body feel like a log. Janice has full mental function, but has become a fraction of her former active and vibrant self due to the continuous pain she experiences. She cannot drive and has difficulty traveling.
During the past year, approximately $75,000 in expenses have been incurred by Janice in medical treatment. The cost of HIFU will add another $30,000 of out-of-pocket expenses that will not be covered by her medical policy. Funds raised in this GoFundMe will be used for Janice's medical expenses and to pay for the HIFU.
More Information About Janice's Stroke and HIFU:
On March 3rd, 2019, Janice suffered a stroke of the right side of her brain, which affected the entire left side of her body. The cause was determined by doctors to likely be the result of an aggressive and unpermitted maneuver by a masseuse (LMT) in Knoxville, TN. During that massage, Janice's neck was radically manipulated. Janice suffered the stroke within a few hours of the massage.
Janice has been very proactive in seeking to understand, research, and find the right treatments for the rare brain condition she suffers as a result of the stroke. She and her husband have traveled to numerous providers and experts over the past year. The doctors discovered that the stroke damage was the result of a rupture of one of the vertebral arteries, 2 vessels normally protected within the structures just outside the spinal column. The ischemic stroke that affected the right side of the brain subsequently underwent "hemorrhagic conversion," where the damaged tissues further decayed, causing more tissue injury. The result is a "chronic thalamic pain syndrome," an atypical version of a stroke. The damaged thalamus falsely registers both extreme skin touch pain (allodynia), severe burning, and a false sense of muscle cramping on the left half side of the body, from head to toe.
The Maluskys have been offered one option that can have the ability to resolve the condition, High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU). HIFU uses an MRI to map the brain, and the damaged portion of the thalamus is remotely and progressively destroyed through the one-time administration of a focused surgical ultrasound. Patients are conscious during this hospital procedure, and are consulted throughout its administration. Once the doctors and patient are satisfied with the reduction of the symptoms, the patient is observed overnight at the hospital.
The only facility that offers this treatment to correct this condition is The West Virginia University. The Neurosurgery Board at West Virginia University required that Janice wait one year before this treatment. Now that it has been one year since the stroke and Janice's symptoms persist in full with no relief, the board has now approved Janice to receive the procedure.
Janice was a health-conscious and vibrant 68 year-old before the stroke. She was on no medications, and maintained a healthy lifestyle of hiking, pickle ball, and daily exercise workouts. She is a very generous and giving person. She and her sister were running a children's music program in the Appalachian region that she would love to continue.
For the entire year since the stroke, Janice has been in extreme pain. Specifically, Janice's thalamus was severely damaged by the stroke, and her thalamus now falsely registers any skin touch as extreme pain (allodynia). She also experiences severe burning, a false sense of muscle cramping on the left half side of the body, and various areas of her body feel like a log. Janice has full mental function, but has become a fraction of her former active and vibrant self due to the continuous pain she experiences. She cannot drive and has difficulty traveling.
During the past year, approximately $75,000 in expenses have been incurred by Janice in medical treatment. The cost of HIFU will add another $30,000 of out-of-pocket expenses that will not be covered by her medical policy. Funds raised in this GoFundMe will be used for Janice's medical expenses and to pay for the HIFU.
More Information About Janice's Stroke and HIFU:
On March 3rd, 2019, Janice suffered a stroke of the right side of her brain, which affected the entire left side of her body. The cause was determined by doctors to likely be the result of an aggressive and unpermitted maneuver by a masseuse (LMT) in Knoxville, TN. During that massage, Janice's neck was radically manipulated. Janice suffered the stroke within a few hours of the massage.
Janice has been very proactive in seeking to understand, research, and find the right treatments for the rare brain condition she suffers as a result of the stroke. She and her husband have traveled to numerous providers and experts over the past year. The doctors discovered that the stroke damage was the result of a rupture of one of the vertebral arteries, 2 vessels normally protected within the structures just outside the spinal column. The ischemic stroke that affected the right side of the brain subsequently underwent "hemorrhagic conversion," where the damaged tissues further decayed, causing more tissue injury. The result is a "chronic thalamic pain syndrome," an atypical version of a stroke. The damaged thalamus falsely registers both extreme skin touch pain (allodynia), severe burning, and a false sense of muscle cramping on the left half side of the body, from head to toe.
The Maluskys have been offered one option that can have the ability to resolve the condition, High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU). HIFU uses an MRI to map the brain, and the damaged portion of the thalamus is remotely and progressively destroyed through the one-time administration of a focused surgical ultrasound. Patients are conscious during this hospital procedure, and are consulted throughout its administration. Once the doctors and patient are satisfied with the reduction of the symptoms, the patient is observed overnight at the hospital.
The only facility that offers this treatment to correct this condition is The West Virginia University. The Neurosurgery Board at West Virginia University required that Janice wait one year before this treatment. Now that it has been one year since the stroke and Janice's symptoms persist in full with no relief, the board has now approved Janice to receive the procedure.