**Help Carrie Get the Medical Answers She Desperately Needs**

Many of you may not be aware of the daily pain my sister Carrie endures. It's easy to overlook someone's suffering when they don't appear sick or vocalize their struggles.

In February 2022, Carrie and our cousin Patricia went on an overnight trip to Monterey. In the middle of the night, Carrie woke up in excruciating pain in her leg—pain so severe she almost went to the ER. Worried and out of town, they cut their trip short and came home. Once back, Carrie went to the emergency room, where she was treated for the pain and underwent blood work and scans. The doctors could see her inflammation markers were high, indicating pain, but radiology tests didn’t reveal anything conclusive. To manage the inflammation and pain, Carrie was prescribed prednisone.

Over the next few months, Carrie made multiple trips to the ER, but none of the doctors could pinpoint the cause of her pain. She was referred to a rheumatologist, who ordered routine bloodwork, CT scans, MRI scans, and even a spinal tap. While prednisone helped manage the pain, it’s not a long-term solution.

After months of testing without a diagnosis, Carrie was referred to UCSF Rheumatology. We were hopeful this visit would finally provide answers. However, when the doctor arrived, he gently explained, “I know you’ve waited a long time to see me, but I have some bad news. All these tests are null and void because the prednisone has likely masked any results. You’ll need to taper off the prednisone and redo the tests.”

It took four months to wean off prednisone, during which Carrie was in constant pain, with only pain meds to help her through. Despite the retesting, no clear diagnosis emerged. Desperate for answers, the doctor ordered a whole-body PET scan. The results were alarming—Carrie’s scan "lit up like a candle," indicating potential bone marrow issues and a possible malignancy, requiring an oncology consultation. This was a terrifying time. After a bone marrow biopsy, we were relieved to learn there was no cancer. However, Carrie still had no diagnosis. UCSF sought a second opinion, which confirmed there were no cancer cells. To manage her symptoms without prednisone, Carrie was started on a low dose of chemotherapy (methotrexate) and now relies on pain medication to get through each day.

Her rheumatologist is perplexed and has suggested that her condition might be related to a vaccine injury. As a last resort, she reached out to the Mayo Clinic for help. After months of correspondence, she finally has an appointment scheduled for October in Phoenix, Arizona. Unfortunately, her insurance doesn’t cover out-of-state or out-of-network care. The Mayo Clinic requires a $5,000 deposit before they can even see her for a consultation. Afterward, they’ll work with her local doctors to determine what tests might be necessary, ideally allowing those tests to be covered by her insurance.

This journey will likely require several trips to Arizona, with associated costs for hotel stays, flights, and car rentals. These are unexpected expenses, and any support would mean the world to us. Your donations will help Carrie get the answers and treatment she desperately needs.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.