ALL in for ALEX
Donation protected
**We are setting this fundraiser up with permission from Lisa and Sheldon.**
Alex was a normal, healthy, vibrant 11 year old until just 6 months ago. In late June she went into sudden bone marrow failure, for no known reason. She has been diagnosed with "Very Severe Aplastic Anemia with PNH Clone". Her friends and family are devastated by this sudden life changing event, especially her parents (Lisa and Sheldon), and her little sister Kimber. She spent nearly the entire summer in the hospital, receiving many transfusions of red blood cells and platelets. Despite some very intensive immunosuppressive therapy (IST), her bone marrow has not recovered. She currently doesn't produce red blood cells (carry oxygen), white blood cells (fight infection) or platelets (clotting). The next step in her treatment is a bone marrow transplant, which she needs to survive. Unfortunately there is no family match so a search is being made now to find a bone marrow match from the world wide registry. Friends and family have been hosting Bone Marrow Registry Drives to increase her chances of finding a match. Fortunately, there are some preliminary leads and the Pasichnyk family has been told to be prepared for a potential transplant in January. Alex will need to be in Calgary for 3 months as bone marrow transplants are only performed there (not available in Edmonton). Unfortunately, the Pasichnyks will be separated during the 3 months, as Sheldon and Kimber will have to stay home due to work and school. This means there will be many trips back and forth to Calgary. Alex will be isolated from most people during this time as it's critical she avoid exposure to viruses and bacteria. Prior to the transplant, Alex will have chemotherapy and radiation and many medications to decrease the chance of her body rejecting the new marrow. The transplanted marrow, called newborn marrow, will take up home in Alex's bones and take over as if it was always there. A successful "graft" (when the bone marrow transplant does not get rejected) could be a complete cure for Alex and life can return to normal as we all know it.
Why a GoFundMe Page, and why now?
None of us thought Alex would be sick for this long. We all hoped (crossed fingers, toes and everything else possible) that this would be a bad summer that was long forgotten by now. Next, we hoped that the immunosuppression would kick Alex's bone marrow back into production. 6 months later, everything is still the same. Alex goes to clinic twice per week to get transfusions and into hospital when she's sick. She has not been able to return to school. She gets short of breath and has pain when her hemoglobin is low and bleeding when her platelets are low. Alex is severely immunocompromised and is at risk for hospitalization all the time. Because of the this, Lisa has not been able to return to work. She is an Emergency Room nurse who has helped countless people throughout her career and now her family needs the help. Lisa and Sheldon have always said no when asked about starting up a GoFundMe page. Now that they know they are Calgary bound for 3 months and there are more expenses coming with half the income, they finally agreed (after much persuasion). Some of the things that this fundraiser will help pay for are:
1) Gas - to travel back and forth to Calgary
2) Food - for Lisa at the hospital (Alex gets food provided obviously!). Also for Kimber and Sheldon while at home.... one can't survive on mac and cheese!
3) Lodging - working on a few options but all of them have some sort of cost
4) Entertainment for Alex while stuck in isolation in Calgary. Things like ordering movies, playing games, books, magazines etc
5) Keep Kimber’s life as ‘normal’ as can be and keeping her in the activities she loves
6) Supplement Lisa's income while she's not able to work
Lisa and Sheldon (on behalf of Alex) have been set up as the beneficiary to this fundraiser. They are the only ones with access to the money (we can not withdraw money on their behalf). There is a flat 2.9% fee when you donate to this campaign plus 30 cents per transaction. If you would rather not pay this fee, please send your donation directly to Lisa and Sheldon.
The outpouring of support has been unbelievable to this point. From all the people who have joined the Bone Marrow Registry by swabbing their cheek to the many treats dropped off for the Pasichnyks to the words of supports and hugs, we thank you. We know we will get through this and we humbly ask for your support during this time. THANK YOU!!
Alex was a normal, healthy, vibrant 11 year old until just 6 months ago. In late June she went into sudden bone marrow failure, for no known reason. She has been diagnosed with "Very Severe Aplastic Anemia with PNH Clone". Her friends and family are devastated by this sudden life changing event, especially her parents (Lisa and Sheldon), and her little sister Kimber. She spent nearly the entire summer in the hospital, receiving many transfusions of red blood cells and platelets. Despite some very intensive immunosuppressive therapy (IST), her bone marrow has not recovered. She currently doesn't produce red blood cells (carry oxygen), white blood cells (fight infection) or platelets (clotting). The next step in her treatment is a bone marrow transplant, which she needs to survive. Unfortunately there is no family match so a search is being made now to find a bone marrow match from the world wide registry. Friends and family have been hosting Bone Marrow Registry Drives to increase her chances of finding a match. Fortunately, there are some preliminary leads and the Pasichnyk family has been told to be prepared for a potential transplant in January. Alex will need to be in Calgary for 3 months as bone marrow transplants are only performed there (not available in Edmonton). Unfortunately, the Pasichnyks will be separated during the 3 months, as Sheldon and Kimber will have to stay home due to work and school. This means there will be many trips back and forth to Calgary. Alex will be isolated from most people during this time as it's critical she avoid exposure to viruses and bacteria. Prior to the transplant, Alex will have chemotherapy and radiation and many medications to decrease the chance of her body rejecting the new marrow. The transplanted marrow, called newborn marrow, will take up home in Alex's bones and take over as if it was always there. A successful "graft" (when the bone marrow transplant does not get rejected) could be a complete cure for Alex and life can return to normal as we all know it.
Why a GoFundMe Page, and why now?
None of us thought Alex would be sick for this long. We all hoped (crossed fingers, toes and everything else possible) that this would be a bad summer that was long forgotten by now. Next, we hoped that the immunosuppression would kick Alex's bone marrow back into production. 6 months later, everything is still the same. Alex goes to clinic twice per week to get transfusions and into hospital when she's sick. She has not been able to return to school. She gets short of breath and has pain when her hemoglobin is low and bleeding when her platelets are low. Alex is severely immunocompromised and is at risk for hospitalization all the time. Because of the this, Lisa has not been able to return to work. She is an Emergency Room nurse who has helped countless people throughout her career and now her family needs the help. Lisa and Sheldon have always said no when asked about starting up a GoFundMe page. Now that they know they are Calgary bound for 3 months and there are more expenses coming with half the income, they finally agreed (after much persuasion). Some of the things that this fundraiser will help pay for are:
1) Gas - to travel back and forth to Calgary
2) Food - for Lisa at the hospital (Alex gets food provided obviously!). Also for Kimber and Sheldon while at home.... one can't survive on mac and cheese!
3) Lodging - working on a few options but all of them have some sort of cost
4) Entertainment for Alex while stuck in isolation in Calgary. Things like ordering movies, playing games, books, magazines etc
5) Keep Kimber’s life as ‘normal’ as can be and keeping her in the activities she loves
6) Supplement Lisa's income while she's not able to work
Lisa and Sheldon (on behalf of Alex) have been set up as the beneficiary to this fundraiser. They are the only ones with access to the money (we can not withdraw money on their behalf). There is a flat 2.9% fee when you donate to this campaign plus 30 cents per transaction. If you would rather not pay this fee, please send your donation directly to Lisa and Sheldon.
The outpouring of support has been unbelievable to this point. From all the people who have joined the Bone Marrow Registry by swabbing their cheek to the many treats dropped off for the Pasichnyks to the words of supports and hugs, we thank you. We know we will get through this and we humbly ask for your support during this time. THANK YOU!!
Organizer and beneficiary
Heather Kreiser Kemp
Organizer
St Albert, AB
Lisa Pasichnyk
Beneficiary