Hi everyone! I'm Kaleigh, Christine's daughter. As many of you know, my mom has been through the wringer in the last 2.5 years and things are only becoming more complicated. On March 8th, she will be traveling to Chicago (where I live) from New York (where she lives), for a very serious abdominal surgery that cannot be done safely in New York. This surgery is to fix a very large hernia that happened as a result of her last surgery (with more information about that debacle below).

A quick summary of her medical journey so far

(You can read all of the details of her story in an update at the bottom of this page.)

Christine's appendix burst on September 2, 2023. They could not do surgery because of the extensive adhesions and inflammation, and had they done so, she would have lost part of her colon. She was hospitalized for two weeks, sent away with antibiotics, and told to return to see a GI doctor to discuss surgery in November.

Before she could see that GI doctor her appendix ruptured a second time. She was once again hospitalized for a week and sent away with the same plan: Antibiotics ➡️ wait 6-8 weeks ➡️ see surgeon for surgery.

On December 27, she had an unsuccessful laparotomy to remove her appendix. They could not find it due to extensive adhesions and inflammation, as well as heavy bleeding in all 4 quadrants. A surgery that was supposed to take 1.5 hours turned into one 6.5 hours long.

In January 2024, she had a CT scan which revealed the abscesses (pockets of infection) had returned and she was placed on antibiotics once more. It was a few weeks later in February, that her doctors said they would no longer touch her. They urged her to get a second opinion and stopped communicating with her. She was left with a very angry and infected appendix, debilitating stomach pain, and, to make matters worse, had developed C-Diff from all of the antibiotics.

It was at this point we decided that the best option would be for her to seek care at the emergency room of a large teaching hospital in order to expedite care. So, February 25, 2024, she flew to Chicago and was admitted to Northwestern Hospital.

She was admitted due to a, once more, fluid-filled appendix and infection, only this time they had a plan to help her. She was sent home after being released from the hospital and told to return in 6 weeks for surgery, so she did.

From April 4, 2024 - July 2, 2024, she was in Chicago receiving care. In the surgeon's review of her records, they discovered that the reason for her heavy bleeding in all 4 quadrants during her first surgery was due to Stage IV Liver Cirrhosis. Before she could have surgery, it was critical for them to lower the pressure in her liver to lower the bleeding risk. She had a few procedures to do this and eventually a shunt was placed during her TIPS procedure in May, finally making her ready for surgery.

She had surgery on June 20, 2024 where her appendix, and a small part of her colon due to inflammation, were removed. She had a hernia that was also repaired in surgery.

What's happening now:

Since then, she has been traveling to Chicago every 3-6 months for continued supervision and management of her Stage IV Liver Cirrhosis. It was during one of these check-ups that they discovered her hernia had returned, only much much bigger than before, and much more painful. She will be having surgery in Chicago on March 11th to repair this hernia, a decision that was made last minute to lower the risk of a small bowel obstruction and the need for emergency surgery.

That's where we need your help.

Her surgeon said she should expect to be hospitalized after this surgery for at least 4-5 days, with an epidural in her back for pain control for at least 3-4 days. It will be a long and difficult surgery, and recovery. After she is released from the hospital, she will need time to recover in Chicago before flying home.

I am very chronically ill, with several chronic illnesses that leave me mostly homebound except for appointments and trips to the pharmacy and I live with severe, chronic pain. Because of this, my brother, Cody, will be flying out to Chicago to help care for our mom as she recovers. My apartment is a small 1 bedroom, barely 600 sq.ft., and there is not room for all 3 of us to stay. My mom will need to recover in a hotel close to the hospital, since she will have a home health nurse coming to check on her frequently. The hospital is in downtown Chicago, the most expensive area of the Windy City, and the expenses from needing to stay in a hotel for several nights as she recovers are going to add up quickly, not to mention food and medication costs, as well as their flights home when she is finally able to travel.

We would be endlessly grateful for any financial support you are able to give. There is so much about this surgery that is very scary and stressful, and having some financial aid will certainly take some of that stress and fear away. It will also set our minds at ease to know that she will be able to take her time recovering, rather than needing to rush home before she's ready due to insufficient funds and being unable to afford more time in the hotel.

If you have read this far, thank you so much for your time. Our family is so appreciative of the thoughts and prayers she has received throughout all of this. Your support means everything to us.