Morgan Rowland - Medical Funds
Donation protected
My big sister, Morgan Rowland, has endured many challenges due to her health since February 14, 2013. On that day she began to have extreme stomach pains, to the extent of not being able to walk. My family later found out she was having a pancreatitis attack and this was the first of many. After being hospitalized for 8 days, while having to take some of her final exams for college in the hospital, and discussing many options with the doctors, they decided she needed to have an ERCP. After two scheduled ERCPs not going as planned in our hometown of Franklin, NC, my sister was sent to MUSC in May of 2013, five hours away from home. During her trip to MUSC, she had an MRCP, the doctors said that everything looked fine and there was no reason for this pancreatitis attack. Several days after returning from MUSC she graduated, and was able to walk, from Western Carolina University. Morgan was okay for a few months but she endured everyday pain and everyday nausea, which continues to remain to this day.
Morgan began having more pain and more problems again around November 2013. The doctors said the next step was to remove her gallbladder, for that could be causing her pancreatitis. In February of 2014, Morgan had her gallbladder removed. Once again, she was okay for a few months. Between February and August she went to get fluids several times, which is a huge help to her pancreas, as being dehydrated causes extreme pain. Around the end of August, the bad pains reoccurred.
On October 8, 2014, my mother and sister left for her first trip to the medical center at Duke University. During this trip Morgan had her first ERCP, in which they were not able to gain access to the duct, but were able to cut the very end of the opening a tiny bit, in hopes that this would solve the problem. Within the first day of being there they learned more about the pancreas than they had learned throughout the whole journey, we also found out the correct treatment for the reoccurring pancreatitis. With the cut at the opening of the duct, she had slight relief from the pain, but not the nausea. During this trip to Duke, Morgan was put on a very strict diet. She could have no more than 15-20 grams of fat a day. Once again, she managed to be okay for a few months.
During the end of March 2015, Morgan went on a trip to Breckenridge, Colorado. While she was there, she had another attack. She had to go to the clinic and get fluids. She returned home the first of April and began losing too much weight unexpectedly. (She is usually 104 lbs and had already lost about 10 lbs.) One of her doctors suggested she go straight to the ER and she was admitted into Mission Memorial Hospital for a few days. During this trip to the hospital, Duke was contacted and said to bring her back immediately because her pancreatic numbers were elevated so high. Duke wanted to do an ERCP, however, Morgan’s pancreas was not in good enough health for this. May 12, 2015, my mother and Morgan went back to Duke and Dr. Burbridge did another ERCP. By the grace of God, Dr. Burbridge decided to go into the opposite side of the pancreas to check it out, even though MUSC had documented that there was nothing wrong there. Dr. Burbridge found that Morgan has pancreas divisum. This means she has two ducts that should’ve formed to one before birth but did not. Dr. Burbridge didn’t want to go in and try to widen the ducts again. Therefore, the head doctor was scheduled to perform her next ERCP because she was sure he could fix it. On June 1, my mom, Morgan, and I returned for another ERCP. However, Dr. Branch was not able to do what was expected, simply because her ducts are too tiny. We headed back to the hotel, as mom is usually able to keep her pain under control. June 2, Morgan was in excruciating pain, we had to take her to the Emergency dept. After hours of waiting, we finally got some fluids, and sent back to the waiting room. Around midnight, we got into the Emergency room, and told that they were going to keep her overnight in an observation room. The next morning came and Morgan's pain was still extremely high. She was admitted into the hospital and wasn't released until June 8. Another ERCP was scheduled for June 12. For this upcoming ERCP, Dr. Branch and Dr. Burbridge cleared out a few hours of their days to work on her (typically a 30 minute procedure, her most recent ones were all a little over 2 hours.) They were unsuccessful. Morgan was admitted into the hospital soon after procedure. She wasn't released until June 17 this time, not returning home until June 19. Branch and Burbridge presented her case to the top surgeons at Duke during a surgical conference. Dr. Pappas, one of the best GI surgeons, accepted Morgan as a patient.
July 13, mom and Morgan went back to meet with him. His answers weren’t exactly the answers we were looking for… This was a very heartbreaking time. He said that he can cut her open (all the way across her stomach) and go in, and that he can widen the duct, but that there is only a 60-70% chance that this will bring her pancreas problems to an end. After this surgery, most people lose 15-20 pounds, however, Morgan currently weighs about 90 lbs and really can't lose any more . So with that being said, she would have to be put on a feeding tube, potentially for several months… This most likely is going to be the next step we have to take.
Before we take this huge step, mom and Morgan will be going to Mayo Clinic in Minnesota (15 hours away from home) on July 26. This being because Mayo Clinic is the top hospital, and they have excellent knowledge about the pancreas. They will be going here to get another opinion, and make sure that they agree with the doctors at Duke, and that there is nothing more that can be done before we pursue the surgery. They have been told to be prepared to be at Mayo for at least seven business days, and maybe longer. Any additional tests they think they need, or could be beneficial will have to be done.
To any and every person who has kept my sister and my family in their prayers, we really appreciate it. To everyone who shares this to help spread the word and to anyone who donates, we are extremely thankful for it all, as this has been very costly and is becoming more costly as time goes on, especially due to the fact that Morgan has been out of work since April (due to her health conditions) and mom has had to take lots of time off to travel with Morgan. We are believing that Morgan will be healed on the Lord’s time, and giving Him all of the glory. We are also continuing to praise him for our great team of doctors at Duke, and the opportunity to go to Mayo. Once again, thank you all for everything. It is all appreciated more than any of you could ever know.
Morgan began having more pain and more problems again around November 2013. The doctors said the next step was to remove her gallbladder, for that could be causing her pancreatitis. In February of 2014, Morgan had her gallbladder removed. Once again, she was okay for a few months. Between February and August she went to get fluids several times, which is a huge help to her pancreas, as being dehydrated causes extreme pain. Around the end of August, the bad pains reoccurred.
On October 8, 2014, my mother and sister left for her first trip to the medical center at Duke University. During this trip Morgan had her first ERCP, in which they were not able to gain access to the duct, but were able to cut the very end of the opening a tiny bit, in hopes that this would solve the problem. Within the first day of being there they learned more about the pancreas than they had learned throughout the whole journey, we also found out the correct treatment for the reoccurring pancreatitis. With the cut at the opening of the duct, she had slight relief from the pain, but not the nausea. During this trip to Duke, Morgan was put on a very strict diet. She could have no more than 15-20 grams of fat a day. Once again, she managed to be okay for a few months.
During the end of March 2015, Morgan went on a trip to Breckenridge, Colorado. While she was there, she had another attack. She had to go to the clinic and get fluids. She returned home the first of April and began losing too much weight unexpectedly. (She is usually 104 lbs and had already lost about 10 lbs.) One of her doctors suggested she go straight to the ER and she was admitted into Mission Memorial Hospital for a few days. During this trip to the hospital, Duke was contacted and said to bring her back immediately because her pancreatic numbers were elevated so high. Duke wanted to do an ERCP, however, Morgan’s pancreas was not in good enough health for this. May 12, 2015, my mother and Morgan went back to Duke and Dr. Burbridge did another ERCP. By the grace of God, Dr. Burbridge decided to go into the opposite side of the pancreas to check it out, even though MUSC had documented that there was nothing wrong there. Dr. Burbridge found that Morgan has pancreas divisum. This means she has two ducts that should’ve formed to one before birth but did not. Dr. Burbridge didn’t want to go in and try to widen the ducts again. Therefore, the head doctor was scheduled to perform her next ERCP because she was sure he could fix it. On June 1, my mom, Morgan, and I returned for another ERCP. However, Dr. Branch was not able to do what was expected, simply because her ducts are too tiny. We headed back to the hotel, as mom is usually able to keep her pain under control. June 2, Morgan was in excruciating pain, we had to take her to the Emergency dept. After hours of waiting, we finally got some fluids, and sent back to the waiting room. Around midnight, we got into the Emergency room, and told that they were going to keep her overnight in an observation room. The next morning came and Morgan's pain was still extremely high. She was admitted into the hospital and wasn't released until June 8. Another ERCP was scheduled for June 12. For this upcoming ERCP, Dr. Branch and Dr. Burbridge cleared out a few hours of their days to work on her (typically a 30 minute procedure, her most recent ones were all a little over 2 hours.) They were unsuccessful. Morgan was admitted into the hospital soon after procedure. She wasn't released until June 17 this time, not returning home until June 19. Branch and Burbridge presented her case to the top surgeons at Duke during a surgical conference. Dr. Pappas, one of the best GI surgeons, accepted Morgan as a patient.
July 13, mom and Morgan went back to meet with him. His answers weren’t exactly the answers we were looking for… This was a very heartbreaking time. He said that he can cut her open (all the way across her stomach) and go in, and that he can widen the duct, but that there is only a 60-70% chance that this will bring her pancreas problems to an end. After this surgery, most people lose 15-20 pounds, however, Morgan currently weighs about 90 lbs and really can't lose any more . So with that being said, she would have to be put on a feeding tube, potentially for several months… This most likely is going to be the next step we have to take.
Before we take this huge step, mom and Morgan will be going to Mayo Clinic in Minnesota (15 hours away from home) on July 26. This being because Mayo Clinic is the top hospital, and they have excellent knowledge about the pancreas. They will be going here to get another opinion, and make sure that they agree with the doctors at Duke, and that there is nothing more that can be done before we pursue the surgery. They have been told to be prepared to be at Mayo for at least seven business days, and maybe longer. Any additional tests they think they need, or could be beneficial will have to be done.
To any and every person who has kept my sister and my family in their prayers, we really appreciate it. To everyone who shares this to help spread the word and to anyone who donates, we are extremely thankful for it all, as this has been very costly and is becoming more costly as time goes on, especially due to the fact that Morgan has been out of work since April (due to her health conditions) and mom has had to take lots of time off to travel with Morgan. We are believing that Morgan will be healed on the Lord’s time, and giving Him all of the glory. We are also continuing to praise him for our great team of doctors at Duke, and the opportunity to go to Mayo. Once again, thank you all for everything. It is all appreciated more than any of you could ever know.
Organizer and beneficiary
Micaiah Elaine Rowland
Organizer
Franklin, NC
Gary and Lynn Rowland
Beneficiary