Angie's Angels - Fight MS!
Donation protected
I am starting this fund for my sister, Angie Hicks. Angie is in her early forties and has two wonderful sons. She has found her forever love in her husband Tim. Her other passions are anything Disney and numbers. (I don’t understand the last one but that’s Angie for you.)
Angie has MS. She was diagnosed 7 years ago when I insisted that something serious was happening and she should have further tests. Angie’s doctors think her symptoms probably started 16 years ago.
The symptoms Angie has experienced are too numerous to detail. She cannot really use the left side of her body, causing significant loss of mobility. She also has difficulty sleeping, extreme fatigue and cuirculatory problems. Angie cannot take a step without a wall or arm to hold on to, or a walker.
Angie is an incredibly strong person. Many would not know that anything was wrong because she has a fantastic ability to make the best of things. But I know that this woman that used to climb rocks for fun and would not stop working or reduce activity at 9 months pregnant is emotionally struggling with the severe loss of mobility. She falls often which has caused many injuries and trips to the ER.
Angie has gone through all known medications for MS and for her symptoms. Nothing has made a lasting impact. She most recently went through chemotherapy to help stop the progression of the disease. This seems to be helping, because she has not had a relapse, but it has further impeded her immune system. Because she couldn’t fight off infections, she ended up with a staph infection that went undiagnosed for months. And with the infection, Angie’s symptoms have increased. So she had to go on disability for 15 weeks so she could rest and get better. Angie is back at work but unable to travel to the office every day. It is just exhausting for her to travel the hour and a half to the office, even with a driver. She works from home most days.
To make things even harder for Angie and Tim, Tim has had a series of 5 jobs he was chosen for since August of last year and they have all been put on hold. This has left him doing odd jobs to get by for nearly a year.
Since there are no clear options for her recovering from her symptoms, she has continuously looked at alternatives. The most promising could show incredible improvement in her quality of life.
We have decided the next step should be for her to have a TVAM (Transvascular Autonomic Modulation) procedure and stem cell therapy. During this procedure balloons are used to dilate her viens in hopes of improving blood flow and giving her relief from her symptoms. The hope is that she will have increased mobility and that she may be able to use her left hand and leg. The Mesenchymal Stem Cell therapy is currently considered an investigational treatment. But it has already shown considerable promise in treating a range of degenerative conditions. The TVAM is partially covered by insurance but the stem cell, which could give Angie her life back, will need to be paid in full. (We have put the stem cell on hold and reduced the funding goal.) TVAM is now the focus.
Other MS patients have experienced incredible recoveries, some even regaining full mobility. Their stories give us hope that Angie may be one of those people who can benefit from these two procedures.
I would also like to acknowledge the incredible care Angie’s husband, Tim Hicks, has given her through the years of struggles. Tim is the angel who wakes up in the middle of the night to help Angie to the bathroom and calls the ambulance when she has hit her head in a fall. Angie and Tim could stand for life to be just a little bit easier! These treatments are a hope for that. So we want Angie to have the treatments as soon as possible. MS is completely unpredictable, and it is not prudent to wait considering at any time Angie could have a relapse. I can’t bare the thought of her symptoms getting worse.
Angie does not want to accept help, especially financial help, from anyone. So I made her a deal. We will all help her get this promising treatment and in return she can spend the rest of her life paying it forward.
These efforts will not end, because there is always, always someone who needs this type of help. Any additional funds raised will go to another MS patient to help with funding additional treatments.
Angie’s family thanks you all for your assistance with making this dream come true!
Angie has MS. She was diagnosed 7 years ago when I insisted that something serious was happening and she should have further tests. Angie’s doctors think her symptoms probably started 16 years ago.
The symptoms Angie has experienced are too numerous to detail. She cannot really use the left side of her body, causing significant loss of mobility. She also has difficulty sleeping, extreme fatigue and cuirculatory problems. Angie cannot take a step without a wall or arm to hold on to, or a walker.
Angie is an incredibly strong person. Many would not know that anything was wrong because she has a fantastic ability to make the best of things. But I know that this woman that used to climb rocks for fun and would not stop working or reduce activity at 9 months pregnant is emotionally struggling with the severe loss of mobility. She falls often which has caused many injuries and trips to the ER.
Angie has gone through all known medications for MS and for her symptoms. Nothing has made a lasting impact. She most recently went through chemotherapy to help stop the progression of the disease. This seems to be helping, because she has not had a relapse, but it has further impeded her immune system. Because she couldn’t fight off infections, she ended up with a staph infection that went undiagnosed for months. And with the infection, Angie’s symptoms have increased. So she had to go on disability for 15 weeks so she could rest and get better. Angie is back at work but unable to travel to the office every day. It is just exhausting for her to travel the hour and a half to the office, even with a driver. She works from home most days.
To make things even harder for Angie and Tim, Tim has had a series of 5 jobs he was chosen for since August of last year and they have all been put on hold. This has left him doing odd jobs to get by for nearly a year.
Since there are no clear options for her recovering from her symptoms, she has continuously looked at alternatives. The most promising could show incredible improvement in her quality of life.
We have decided the next step should be for her to have a TVAM (Transvascular Autonomic Modulation) procedure and stem cell therapy. During this procedure balloons are used to dilate her viens in hopes of improving blood flow and giving her relief from her symptoms. The hope is that she will have increased mobility and that she may be able to use her left hand and leg. The Mesenchymal Stem Cell therapy is currently considered an investigational treatment. But it has already shown considerable promise in treating a range of degenerative conditions. The TVAM is partially covered by insurance but the stem cell, which could give Angie her life back, will need to be paid in full. (We have put the stem cell on hold and reduced the funding goal.) TVAM is now the focus.
Other MS patients have experienced incredible recoveries, some even regaining full mobility. Their stories give us hope that Angie may be one of those people who can benefit from these two procedures.
I would also like to acknowledge the incredible care Angie’s husband, Tim Hicks, has given her through the years of struggles. Tim is the angel who wakes up in the middle of the night to help Angie to the bathroom and calls the ambulance when she has hit her head in a fall. Angie and Tim could stand for life to be just a little bit easier! These treatments are a hope for that. So we want Angie to have the treatments as soon as possible. MS is completely unpredictable, and it is not prudent to wait considering at any time Angie could have a relapse. I can’t bare the thought of her symptoms getting worse.
Angie does not want to accept help, especially financial help, from anyone. So I made her a deal. We will all help her get this promising treatment and in return she can spend the rest of her life paying it forward. These efforts will not end, because there is always, always someone who needs this type of help. Any additional funds raised will go to another MS patient to help with funding additional treatments.
Angie’s family thanks you all for your assistance with making this dream come true!
Organizer and beneficiary
Robin Mangold
Organizer
Parker, CO
Angela Hicks
Beneficiary