Michael Fiebiger's battle for Life

On Christmas 2013 we got the worst news anyone could hear. Our best friend Michael was diagnosed with leukemia and had to start immediate treatment in order to save his life. The weeks before Michael was diagnosed he was complaining of a head ache that prevented him from attending gym. This is when we knew something was wrong. After doctors continued to say it was a virus, Michaels mum Barb forced the doctors to do a blood test as she felt it was something bigger. In 2014/2015 Michael went through multiple rounds of chemo when it was decided he would need a bone marrow transplant to try fight off the persistent cancer cells. After several tests Michaels sister Nicole was a perfect match for the transplant. Michael went through more treatment and then had the transplant. The transplant seemed to be successful with some health hiccups on the way however it seemed the cancer was in remission. Michael then suffered from graph vs host which meant that his new cells were attacking parts of his body in hope to try kill all the cancer cells. Michael was in hospital for months on end and even when discharged had three-four appointments a week and several re-admissions. Michael continued to fight the fight and remain positive about his future. Michaels type of leukemia is acute myloid and due to Michaels DNA his type was extremely rare. Although the doctors discussed the survival rate, Michael was determined to continue fighting and did not let any statistics get him down. The statistics weren't great with a 20% survival rate. The next few months we seen Michael get much better, he was able to go out in public as his immune system was improving, his energy levels improved and he was now only needing to attend hospital once a week and complete 3 blood tests a week at his local doctor. Michael then spent more time with his now girlfriend Monique that he had pushed away when he was first diagnosed as he did not want her to be put through the pain. This gave Michael another purpose in life and gave him more strength to keep going though rehab and building up his strength to be able to return to work and everyday life. Michael had just started back in his construction job for 2 days week and was slowly transitioning back to life. This is when Michael started to get sick and had extreme heart pain. This happened in December 2015. Michael was put through multiple tests and was on an immense amount of medication to ensure he body could recover. Michael had blood tests three times a week to ensure that the cancer cells did not return. Although nothing showed up in the blood tests due to the amount of pain Michael was in, the doctors decided to do more tests which meant Michael was admitted to hospital for several more weeks. After undergoing every painful test under the sun it was decided that the doctors needed to do a heart biopsy on Michaels heart to see what was going on. Michael had to be awake for the surgery due to the importance of his positioning. It was then discovered that Michael had relapsed and the leukemia cells had redeveloped in Michaels heart. This was extremely rare with only a handful of patients in the world that this had happened to. We were absolutely devastated - our best friend who had been through two years of hell, who had just started to be able to participate in the normal activities in life now would have to go through treatment again. Although Michael held it together well he was extremely fearful about what this meant for his future. Michael was told that Christmas 2015 would be his last Christmas so he needed to celebrate with family although he was in hospital. During 2014/2015 Michael had missed out on several birthdays, celebrations, holidays and weddings. In January 2016 Michael was due to be a groomsmen in one of his best mates weddings - friends from when they were 7 years old. When Michael broke the news to his mate Daniel he also had to state that he could not be in his wedding as he had to be admitted for immediate treatment. This largely impacted on Michaels outlook for his future as he had continued to miss out on significant life events. Michael continued to fight and went through another 4 months of chemo. Through this period Michaels health declined, he had an extremely low immune system, collapsed lungs and several bleeds. Michael needed constant hospital support. This was when The Royal Adelaide hospital doctors decided that they would stop treatment because they did not think Michaels body could take anymore. Michael was told that it was too risky to proceed with another transplant and that he should go home and enjoy the life that he has left. This shattered everyone, his hopes, his families hope and our hopes for Michaels battle. Michael challenged the doctors and was determined to fight for his life beyond medical recommendations. Michael and his family pursued a second opinion and flew to Melbourne to meet with doctors about what possible treatments were available. The Alfred Hospital in Melbourne agreed to take Michael on as a patient and to give Michael a second bone marrow transplant although there was significant risks. Michael did not think twice and signed to proceed with the transplant knowing the possible outcome. This time it was harder to find a donor as they could not use his sisters bone marrow because it was ineffective in keeping the cancer cells away for a long period of time. There were only two matches in the world for Michael. The nurses flew overseas to collect the donor cells for a donor that had another match although not as perfect as his sisters. Michael then had to fly to Melbourne hospital to go through his second transplant where he had to stay until he was well enough to fly home. This was expected to take about 6 weeks if all went to plan. Michael was then prepared for his transplant by going through several rounds of chemo. Michaels girlfriend Monique and parents Barb and Mark paid for several flights for Michael and themselves during this time. Due to the intensity of treatment and possible outcomes Michaels mum Barb took all her annual leave, cancelled their family holiday and paid over 1000 a week to stay in accomodation close to the hospital to be with Michael. Michaels strength throughout this time is what kept us all going. Although Michael is fighting the hardest battle of his life, he is the one to motivate us and bring more happiness and laughter than anyone can imagine. Against all odds Michael survived the second transplant and was able to be discharged and return home about 9 weeks later. Once Michael returned home the fight was not over. Michael is still struggling with graph vs host which is the worst it has ever been. Michael cells are attacking his stomach, liver and bowel. Michael spent another 4 weeks in hospital with several 3-4 day admissions every couple of weeks. Michaels immune system is still extremely low, meaning that if anyone is sick or has been around people who are sick they are not able to visit. Michael is forced to wear a mask in many situations to ensure his health. Michael was finally discharged 2 days before Christmas 2016 and it was the first Christmas in three years he was not in hospital. Michaels birthday is also on the 27/12 and he has also spent his last 3 birthdays in hospital. Not only were they in hospital he was so sick he could not even eat. When Michael was first diagnosed with cancer he weighed 101kg of solid muscle. Through treatment Michael got down to 74kg. Michael is now approx 79kgs and is slowly trying to put on more weight. Michael was able to spend this birthday at home although he had to go to the hospital in the morning for a checkup where they discovered Michael had extremely low blood levels and therefore needed a transfusion. The hospital allowed Michael to return home for his birthday lunch but he needed to report back that afternoon. Michael is still fighting for his life and has been back in hospital for weeks now. We are hoping that when Michael has enough strength he is able to go on a holiday that he has always dreamed of. Michael and his family have spent thousands of dollars supporting Michaels treatment. Michael was originally denied Centrelink disability payments because his condition was not permanent. We are hoping to raise enough money to be able to pay back money used for accomodation, flights, medications, hospital admissions and every day expenses that Michael has endured however is unable to afford due to not being able to work. On top of this if Michael was able to go a holiday that he deserves this would make a huge difference to Michaels recovery. Thank you for reading our amazing best friend journey, any donation will help and please share.