Help Lana (Svetlana) Beat MS

For the first time in many years, I have hope again. Some of you know what I’ve been going through. Having Multiple Sclerosis for 10 years has been really hard on me. My MS is progressing now. Each year I can walk less and less. Unfortunately my symptoms have increased over the past year and the treatments do not have any effect on making them disappear. I had to stop working in February of 2015 due to my condition.  

I have lesions on my brain and neck now. Today, I can only walk for about 15 minutes using a cane before my legs give out on me. I avoid longer outings, every small task is becoming difficult to accomplish.   When I get hot or take a shower, I get extremely fatigued. Summer is now my arch-enemy due to heat sensitivity. I just can’t tell you what this has not only done to me but my family. The thought of being in a wheelchair is more and more materializing in front of me through the past two years.
Multiple Sclerosis is an autoimmune disease where your own immune system attacks you.   After months of research my only hope of stopping or slowing down this disease is a Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant (HSCT). #HSCT uses chemo to kill your immune system and then introduces your own stem cells back into you to restart your immune system. There are a few places in the United States doing trials, which I was not accepted.

The wonders of HSCT also known are currently being recognized and tried in the USA but already practiced worldwide. HSCT is not a new medical procedure. It has been peformed millions of time all around the world since the 1960’s for treatment of cancer (now approximately 50,000 times per year). It has been successfull in stopping several types of autoimmune disorders since the early 1990’s, such as MS, scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, CIDP and others. This treatment will be available in USA after phase 3 clinical trials are completed in 2021. Sadly I don’t meet the strict trial criteria.

So, I’m force into leaving the country to have it done.
I have been accepted at the renowned JACIE accredited La Clinica Ruiz in Puebla, Mexico, where I will undergo an HSCT performed by distinguished Mayo Clinic alumnus and award-winning Dr. Guillermo J. Ruiz Argüelles in 2016.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgPdx53KnVg

The procedure will take 1 month. I have to pay for it all out of my pocket. $54,500 to have the treatment plus everything else that goes along with it. All donations will go towards paying for my treatment in Mexico and follow-up treatment in the USA.

I’m in a race against my body. I miss the small things in life, like going for a long walk. Not having pain. HSCT can help me with a lot of my problems. But as you can image $60,000 is a lot of money for anyone to come up with. I’m overwhelmed right now.
To be honest I had given up on any hope of improving my situation. I’m lucky enough to have a great family and friends that loves me. But I want to able to visit my parents in Ukraine, go to my son's college graduation, dance with my son when he get married and be able to play with my grandchildren when the time comes. 

I am a very humble person that hates to ask anyone to do anything for me. I need help, HSCT is my last option and the only hope I have right now. It will be my best 50th birthday present!
 
THANK YOU FOR HELPING ME IN THIS JOURNEY.

Informative links:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51gJJO0UJ2Q
http://www.stemcell-immunotherapy.com/pub_vid.html
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/25711670/
http://archneur.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2084840
https://search.nih.gov/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&affiliate=nih&query=HSCT+MS&commit=Search
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?cmd=search&term=%25Ruiz-Arguelles+G%25+%5Bau%5D&dispmax=50

ABSTRACTED CV
Guillermo JoséRuiz-Argüelles MD, FCRP (Glasg), MACP

Training in Internal Medicine (1980) and Hematology (1982) at the Instituto Nacional de la Nutrición Salvador Zubirán/ Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. Post-doctoral research fellow in Hematology by the Fogarty Foundation in the Department of Hematology of the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, U.S.A (1983).  Director General, Centro de Hematologia y Medicina Interna de Puebla, Clinica RUIZ. Director of the Teaching and Research Division of Laboratorios Clínicos de Puebla, Clinica RUIZ. Professor of Hematology in the Universidad Popular Autónoma del Estado de Puebla and the Universidad de las Americas Puebla. Board-certified in Internal Medicine and Hematology. Member of the Academia Nacional de Medicina de México - National Academy of Medicine - of the Sistema Nacional de Investigadores - National Research System, level III (highest) - of the Academia Mexicana de Ciencias - National Academy of Sciences- and of the Comisión de Investigación en Salud de México - Mexican Health Research Committee. Past-president,  Asociación de Medicina Interna de México - Mexican College of Physicians - (1989). Past-president, Agrupación Mexicanapara el Estudio de la Hematología - Mexican Society of Hematology - (1993-1995). President of the Mexican Chapter of the Mayo Alumni Association (2008-2013). Member of the Board of Directors of the Mayo Alumni Association (2009-2015). Secretary General of the Interamerican Division of the International Society of Hematology (1996-2005). Chair of Council of the International Society of Hematology (2005-2009). President of the International Society of Hematology (2010-2012).   Member of the Committee on Educational Affairs (1999-2002) and of the ad hoc Committee on International Outreach of the American Society of Hematology (1998-2001). Fellow of the American College of Physicians, of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow and of the American Society of Hematology. 

Awards: "International Fogarty Fellowship 1982", "Luis Sánchez Medal” 1986,1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010,2012, 2013 and 2014, the "Jorge Rosenkranz 1987", "EstacioGonzaga 1987", "Aida Weiss 1987, 1989 and 1995", "Everardo Landa1988", "Héctor Labastida 1992", "México Region LaureateAward 1996", of the American College of Physicians, "Premio enCiencias Médicas 1997", of the V Festival Palafoxiano de Puebla, of the"Premio Carso-Funsalud” 1997, 2001, 2003 and 2007 in the area of organtransplantation, the “Ruy PérezTamayo 2000”,the “Premio Nacional de Oncología 2004”, the “Duc in altum” 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009,2010, 2011 and 2012 by the Universidad Popular Autónoma del Estado de Puebla, the “Eduardo Liceaga2006” by the Academia Nacional de Medicina, the “Miguel Otero Arce 2007”, delivered by the president of Mexico in the name of the Consejo General de Salud – General Health Council, the Ignacio Zaragoza Medal, by the Puebla City Major and the.Premio “Roberto Kretschmer Schmidt 2012” by the Academia Nacional de Medicina 

Elected Mayo Clinic Distinguished Alumnus in October 2011 and elected Master of the American College of Physicians in April 2013.

Author of 683 papers in international and domestic peer-reviewed journals: 352 papers in full, 75 letters to the editor and 337 abstracts.
 
( http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=%Ruiz-Arguelles%20G%%20[au]&dispmax=50).

 Author of 48 chapters in books, editor of seven books and co-editor offour. Editor–in–chief of the Revista deHematologia (México), member of the editorial board of peer-reviewed journals, both domestic (Revista deInvestigación Clínica,Medicina Interna de México, Medicina Universitaria, Revista Médica del IMSS, Gaceta Médica de México and De Medicinis Expertis) and foreign (The Lancet Haematology-England, HemOnc Today - USA, International Journal of Hematology - Japan, Acta Haematologica – Switzerland, Biología & Clínica Hematológica - Spain, Revista Brasileira de Hematologia e Hemoterapia - Brasil, Revista de Oncología - Spain,Hematology / Oncology Stem Cell Therapy - Saudi Arabia and Hematology - England)