Medical Missionary in need of Surgery.

Hello, my name is William and I am a volunteer medical missionary serving at the Wildwood Health Institute in Wildwood Georgia full time since 2016 and was a student missionary in 2010. It is a great blessing to be able to serve here and be a part of the Lord’s work in the health ministry and see His many miracles in our guests who come for our programs. Unfortunately, I started having neurological symptoms back in March 2023 in my legs (numbness and fire sensations) and in June after an MRI was performed I was diagnosed with a rare spinal disease which has greatly hindered my ability to serve. The name of the disease is Tarlov Cyst Disease and it is a progressive, chronic, and disabling disorder without surgery. Due to the rare nature of this disease only 3 neurosurgeons in America can/will do the procedure that stops the progression of the cysts (it will not cure the disease). Being a volunteer, I do not have health insurance and the cost of the surgery, hospital, and other medical necessities comes to a total of around $52,000 (this is the self-pay quote)!!! The surgery cannot take place unless the full amount is received. This is an overwhelming amount but I believe the Lord can open many ways for this to be met. I am asking for your prayers and if you can help with the financial part of this in any way, it would be greatly appreciated.

This disease has not received much notice in the medical field and many people who have this disease suffer from the lack of knowledge of how it can affect someone’s life. I have been blessed to have a compassionate medical staff working at the Wildwood Health Institute to help me get the diagnosis and the start of the care needed to control my symptoms. Many people who suffer from this disease go years before they can receive help and some have lost total use of their legs or other parts of their body due to the compressed nerves.

Please visit the Tarlov Cyst Foundation website or Dr. Feigenbaum’s website to learn more about this debilitating disease and how surgery can give back to those who have it their life.

www.tarlovcystfoundation.org

www.frankfeigenbaum.com

Thank you again for your prayers and any other support you can offer.

William Hartsook