Please donate to Arvana's unexpected medical expenses!

On May 18, 2023, Arvana woke at 2am to excruciating pain in his sternum and convulsive vomiting. He waited until he couldn't take the pain any longer before driving himself to the ER nearly 6 hours later. Several needle sticks, pain meds, a CT scan and MRI later, the radiologists identified a 1.5cm pre-cancerous cyst inside his pancreas. Arvana spent 5 days in the hospital before he was able to go home.

Six weeks later on July 3, he woke with the same pain and symptoms and ultimately spent 6 days in the hospital where he lost 25lbs before being discharged. Arvana's medical team diagnosed him with pancreatitis, though the cause was unknown.

In the months that passed, Arvana met with GI doctors, general surgeons, and pancreas specialists from Valley View Hospital and UC Health. He also underwent a biopsy of his stomach and the cyst itself, and has had an endoscopy. All of this has been done in an effort to identify the cause of this life-altering condition.

Fast forward to January 5, 2024: Arvana experienced yet another episode of pancreatitis, though this bout was unlike any other. The pain was a 20/10 and he became bradycardic. He was admitted again and needed continuous oxygen to help him breathe through the fluids filling his lungs (his medical team was flushing his system to help calm his pancreas). The only known treatment for pancreatitis is "nothing by mouth"; after 8 days with no food, his medical team became seriously concerned about all the nutrients he lost and therefore administered a feeding tube. Another CT scan was done and radiologists found necrotic cells in and around his pancreas as well as more small cysts on the outside of his pancreas. He spent 15 days in the hospital.

Arvana's most recent hospital admission for pancreatitis was on May 4. To say this guy is down on his luck would be a complete understatement.

While his insurance has covered a portion of his medical bills which are fast approaching $200K, there is still a very large outstanding amount to pay. With no root cause to his pancreatitis, Arvana's medical bills are only continuing to grow. In fact, he's headed to UC Health this month for another biopsy of the cyst.

If you know Arvana, you know he is self-reliant and would never ask for help for any reason. Ever. The only help he's ever asked for is for my husband, Kyle, and I to watch his dog, Chaco, while he drives himself to the hospital in crippling pain (he won't let us drive him!).

To our friends, family, community, and beyond, I ask that you please help Arvana. Even $5 would be greatly appreciated. Let's rally together and show up for Arvana!