My Aunt Susan's Fight Against Cancer and GBS

Hi, my name is Antonette and I am fundraising for my beloved aunt Susan, who's now struggling with Breast Cancer and GBS (Gullain-Barre Syndrome) - a very rare disorder in which the body's immune system attacks the nerves.

She is 62 years old, single, and a retired teacher of Tacurong Pilot Elementary School in Philippines. 20 years ago, she was diagnosed with colon cancer and fortunately got to a remission stage after how many procedures and treatments.

But just recently, around October 2022, she discovered a lump in her breast and got diagnosed with yet again, another cancer. She went through some procedures and her first and second chemotherapies were done on November and December 2022 respectively.

She was about to have her third chemo on January 5, 2023, but 2 days before that, we rushed her to the nearest ER because she cannot able to sit on her own. She started to feel some numbness of legs the previous night until she totally can't move her lower extremities. She was admitted and the doctors found out that her laboratory results especially blood and some electrolytes were very low, that they thought maybe because of the chemotherapy effects. So they tried to correct everything by giving IV meds and blood transfusion but there was no improvement and still can't move her legs. She had a CT scan with no findings of stroke or any CVA. On January 5, 2023, they referred her to a neurologist who was only available in another hospital of a nearby city. She was then transported and as she was seen by the neurologist in the ER, she was intubated right away since the paralysis ascended from feet upwards, and believed to already affect her breathing (airway/respiratory status), her oxygen saturation went down rapidly from 96% to 88% that time, and was connected to a mechanical ventilator. Diagnosed with Acute Respiratory Failure secondary to Gullain-Barre Syndrome (ascending paralysis), she was admitted to the (ICU) Intensive Care Unit from January 5, 2023 until now. She has total paralysis (quadriplegia) and her breathing is only supported by the mechanical ventilator machine since she can't breathe on her own (and still failed the SBT - Spontaneous Breathing Trials). Good thing is that she never lost her consciousness. Though she doesn't have a voice, she spells what she wants through the ABC visual aid that we provided, still managed to do so even though she's intubated. She receives food through NGT. She then received a very expensive treatment - IVIG, which we really hope to help with her recovery. She was just extubated on January 26, 2023 and a tracheostomy procedure was done. Currently connected to the ventilator machine and still in ICU. The doctors are doing their best for her recovery.

Healthcare in Philippines is very costly even with health insurance. The rate of ICU per day starts from PHP 50,000 (around 900 USD) excluding the procedure fees, other meds, and Doctors' professional fees (Neuro, Pulmo, Onco, Endocrine, Rehab). She already spent 1 month in ICU and we are praying to raise funds as she goes through her recovery. Her recovery, according to the doctors, is most likely favorable as there are improvements seen so far, like she can already move her hands and facial expressions are now observed. It will take a long time for her to recover since her GBS is severe. But we are very hopeful and we believe she can make it through.

She is loved by everyone since she was very helpful and generous to the people close to her and everyone around her. She's a very strong woman with a strong faith in God and has an exceptional fighting spirit. She was able to surpass and fight her colon cancer 20 years ago. So we hope she still can, this time, with GBS and breast cancer. We believe in her and her strong faith. We love her so dearly. I hope you can help her. We greatly appreciate your outpouring support and thank you so much for your kindness and generosity.