Sandy's liver transplant journey
Donation protected
MY STORY
HI everyone!
First of all I want to say that I never thought I would be in this position in my life. As some of you know I was diagnosed with end stage liver disease a couple of years ago, that caused a cancer tumour to grow in my liver. The doctors were able to kill the tumour but my liver is still in very, very bad shape. So bad in fact that the cancer has returned. Since my liver is so bad at this point the doctor will not do anything to remove the tumour, so my only hope to live beyond one year is a liver transplant. Therein lies the problem; I have been on disability for several years because I had Hepatitis C (the cause of all of my liver problems) I had symptoms that prevented me from holding a regular job. Since I was diagnosed with end stage liver disease I was put on a drug protocol that actually cured me of the hepatitis. I thought at that time that my liver would actually have a chance to regenerate enough to help me live a long and healthy life. Boy was I wrong.
MY CURRENT FINANCIAL MEANS
I do make a very small amount of money by working for a mystery shopping company, the business side of it, not actually doing the shopping anymore. This enables me to stay at home and work on the computer. But what I am able to do now is limited because I spend a lot of time in and out of the hospital because of the symptoms of having a cirrhotic liver; also the symptoms make me quite sick so I am spending more and more time in bed. Mike and I are still together after a couple of decades, but unfortunately he is also on disability, so our money is very limited. Mike is not well but he takes very, very good care of me. Thank goodness for him, he goes beyond what anyone would expect, even when he has his own bad health days he makes sure I am taken care of. He has been right beside me the whole time; he is more knowledgeable about health terms, it is so helpful to have him with me. I have not had to do one thing involved with this disease on my own. I am so grateful for him, and the rest of my family. I have two kids, both grown, my daughter has a little boy, my first grandchild. She is pregnant again with a girl this time and I so want to be around to share in their life. Unfortunately they live in Edmonton. My son lives much closer and has really been there for me, way beyond what a child should be for his mom. Both of my kids are doing well, I couldn't be more proud of them both.
WHY I NEED HELP
My issue is I have to go back and forth to Vancouver to see if I am a candidate to be put on the transplant list. We have a vehicle that has been reliable but it has not been tuned up for a very long time and the tires are very bad. We just don’t have the money to put into it to make sure it will remain reliable, plus the cost of going to Vancouver several times, is not cheap. Then, if I am a candidate for a liver transplant we will have to actually move to Vancouver for at least 3 months, as I would have to be within a certain distance to the hospital. Also, even though I am on disability, there are some medications that are not covered and are costly. We just don’t have the money to do this.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
So basically I am asking for help, the transplant is the only way I will live any length of time. If I reach my goal in this campaign and still don’t live very long I would like to use any money raised for the cost of my final expenses. I am embarrassed that it has come to this but…what can I say. If I had another way to do this believe me I would.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
HI everyone!
First of all I want to say that I never thought I would be in this position in my life. As some of you know I was diagnosed with end stage liver disease a couple of years ago, that caused a cancer tumour to grow in my liver. The doctors were able to kill the tumour but my liver is still in very, very bad shape. So bad in fact that the cancer has returned. Since my liver is so bad at this point the doctor will not do anything to remove the tumour, so my only hope to live beyond one year is a liver transplant. Therein lies the problem; I have been on disability for several years because I had Hepatitis C (the cause of all of my liver problems) I had symptoms that prevented me from holding a regular job. Since I was diagnosed with end stage liver disease I was put on a drug protocol that actually cured me of the hepatitis. I thought at that time that my liver would actually have a chance to regenerate enough to help me live a long and healthy life. Boy was I wrong.
MY CURRENT FINANCIAL MEANS
I do make a very small amount of money by working for a mystery shopping company, the business side of it, not actually doing the shopping anymore. This enables me to stay at home and work on the computer. But what I am able to do now is limited because I spend a lot of time in and out of the hospital because of the symptoms of having a cirrhotic liver; also the symptoms make me quite sick so I am spending more and more time in bed. Mike and I are still together after a couple of decades, but unfortunately he is also on disability, so our money is very limited. Mike is not well but he takes very, very good care of me. Thank goodness for him, he goes beyond what anyone would expect, even when he has his own bad health days he makes sure I am taken care of. He has been right beside me the whole time; he is more knowledgeable about health terms, it is so helpful to have him with me. I have not had to do one thing involved with this disease on my own. I am so grateful for him, and the rest of my family. I have two kids, both grown, my daughter has a little boy, my first grandchild. She is pregnant again with a girl this time and I so want to be around to share in their life. Unfortunately they live in Edmonton. My son lives much closer and has really been there for me, way beyond what a child should be for his mom. Both of my kids are doing well, I couldn't be more proud of them both.
WHY I NEED HELP
My issue is I have to go back and forth to Vancouver to see if I am a candidate to be put on the transplant list. We have a vehicle that has been reliable but it has not been tuned up for a very long time and the tires are very bad. We just don’t have the money to put into it to make sure it will remain reliable, plus the cost of going to Vancouver several times, is not cheap. Then, if I am a candidate for a liver transplant we will have to actually move to Vancouver for at least 3 months, as I would have to be within a certain distance to the hospital. Also, even though I am on disability, there are some medications that are not covered and are costly. We just don’t have the money to do this.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
So basically I am asking for help, the transplant is the only way I will live any length of time. If I reach my goal in this campaign and still don’t live very long I would like to use any money raised for the cost of my final expenses. I am embarrassed that it has come to this but…what can I say. If I had another way to do this believe me I would.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
Organizer
Sandy Pedersen
Organizer
Sooke, BC