Help The Barrientos Family in a Medical Crisis

Marco and Amanda could be one of the most amazing set of people you'll ever know. They've gone out of their way time and time again and sacrificed so much to bless others. They have always been generous, thoughtful, giving, helpful, and just all around great people. Please consider helping them through this devastating time in their lives.

At 35 years old, Marco was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma, and considered high risk due to a rare cytogenetic factor, called t(4;14) translocation.

Marco is fighting to beat this cancer with everything he has for his family. Marco and his wife, Amanda, have 3 children (15 yr old son, 13 yr old son and 9 yr old daughter).

Due to a fractured vertebrae and herniated disc (all connected to this medical disaster), Marco has not been able to walk without a walker since September. The chemotherapy has made Marco very tired and struggling to keep up with daily tasks. It's been difficult for the kids to see their dad going from being a very strong, active, provider to needing a full time caregiver.

Financially, Marco has not been able to work since July 2022 and still waiting on disability approval. His wife is the sole income for their family of 5. Amanda has been stretched very thin between juggling a full time job, being Marco's caregiver, taking care of their children, the household chores, and trying to keep up with the financial demands through this difficult time.

Marco's oncologist has referred him to U.C.Davis for a transplant. The transplant team wants to take an aggressive path to treat Marco.

In January 2023, Marco is scheduled to undergo an auto stem cell transplant and will need to be at U.C. Davis as an outpatient for 1 month, he stays there. Due to Marco's cytogenetic factor, t(4;14) translocation, the first transplant is not a long term solution and will need a second transplant a month after the first transplant.

The plan is for Marco to undergo a second transplant via a donor. The donor transplant will give him the best chance at a longer quality of life. The recovery process from the second transplant means that Marco will need to be at U.C. Davis as an outpatient for an additional 3 months. In total, he will need to be away from home for 4.5 months. During this time, he will be in a quarantined environment with a caregiver (this caregiver must be the same person each day in complete isolation with Marco), and not allowed to be around others, including his children.

Amanda will need to take FMLA from work to become Marco's full time caregiver during the recovery process. Marco's transplant team will not allow Marco to undergo a transplant if he does not have a caregiver making it necessary for Amanda to fulfill that role.

Amanda will not be eligible to receive an income from her job during this time while on FMLA. Amanda will still need to make sure their bills in Reno are paid while away at U.C. Davis taking care of Marco. Amanda's mom will be temporarily moving into their house to help keep the kids at home, in school, and trying to keep their lives as normal as possible without their parents being with them. While Amanda's mom is able to watch the kids, she doesn't have an income to help financially.

The Barrientos family will temporarily be separated for 4.5 months which is a grievous thought to even consider, but Marco would not be able to have the two transplants that he needs to give him the best chance at survival.

For this reason we want to help raise funds so it can alleviate some stress for this family and they can focus on getting Marco healthy again.

Just a bit of what this family has been going through these last several months;

In May 2022, Marco went to the emergency room because he was very sick and in a lot of pain. He ended up in the hospital and receiving a blood transfusion for low hemoglobins at 6.2. It was the first of many emergency room visits. Since then, Marco has suffered vision loss due to both retinas bleeding, 3 fractured vertebrae, a herniated disc and a large abscess on his leg that needed to be removed. After a couple of months, Marco was referred to an oncologist and underwent multiple tests.

Multiple Myeloma is a rare type of blood cancer. Only 10% of people diagnosed with this cancer are under 50 years old, and only 2% of those diagnosed are under the age of 40. Approximately 1% of multiple myeloma patients have the translocations of t(4;14). A t(4;14) translocation means that part of chromosome 4 has swapped places with chromosome 14. The genetic factor, t(4;14) translocator, is characterized by a shorter survival rate, mostly due to drug resistance and early relapse. This means that the standard treatments used to treat Multiple Myeloma will not be as effective.