Ilana Goldberg

HELP ILANA BEAT MS

I’m terrible at asking for help. But the truth is, I really need your help. There is a chance for me to conquer the disease that has wrecked havoc with my life, but I can’t do it alone.

Some of you may not know that I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), a progressive neurological condition, in 2006. For close to a decade I was lucky enough to be able to control my symptoms with diet changes, supplements, and natural therapies. In April of last year, I took my neurologist’s suggestion to start one of the immune-modulating drugs approved for MS. I had a severe reaction to the medication and was incredibly ill for several weeks. Following this episode, my MS became hyper-aggressive. I now need to use a cane to walk more than 20 feet and need a wheelchair to travel more than 100 feet. Unfortunately, the arsenal of medications currently available to neurologists are not effective for my particular form of MS. As the disease progresses, I could become permanently confined to a wheelchair or bedridden.

For my own sake and that of my family, I am fighting with everything I have to avoid that. There is hope in the form of a Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant (HSCT). The treatment consists of several chemotherapy infusions to dismantle my faulty immune system followed by a stem-cell “reboot” using my own stem cells. This new therapy is currently in clinical trials in the United States and is the only treatment that can not only halt the progression of the disease, but possibly reverse some of the disability. I was rejected from the clinical trials due to the very limited number and type of patients they accept. This leaves me with the sole option of traveling to a facility that performs HSCT treatments and paying for the treatment myself.

The wait times for the international HSCT clinics can be years, so I signed up knowing that the longer I wait, the more function I lose. However, I have chosen to put myself on the cancellation list as well, which means I have to be ready to leave for the 5-week treatment at a moment’s notice. This is an incredible blessing since it means I could potentially halt my MS within a month instead of years. However, it is also daunting because it means I need to logistically and financially prepare to go to the clinic location in Puebla, Mexico (or Russia, Israel, or Singapore) and spend a month there receiving treatment without much advance warning.

Never in my life have I felt like I needed support so much. I need the thoughts and good wishes of as many people as possible as I go forth into this best-chance treatment. I need to find people to help care for my beautiful children while their mother is off trying to become well again. I need people to help care for me as I go through this treatment. And….I need money. Before I can receive treatment I need to raise up to $120,000 (depending on the clinic). I’m doing what I can on my end, maxing out credit and eating up savings. If there is anything you can contribute to help me make this opportunity possible, I would be forever grateful. Thank you for being a part of my community, and thank you for your help in whatever form it comes.

Please consider making a donation to Help Hope Live to help cover my treatment expenses. And please consider sharing my appeal with your own network.

I have chosen to fundraise with Help Hope Live in part because Help Hope Live assures fiscal accountability of funds raised and tax deductibility to the full extent allowed by law for donors. Donors can be sure that funds donated will be used only to pay or reimburse medically-related expenses. To make a donation to this fundraising campaign, click on the Donate Now button.

For more information, please contact Help Hope Live at 800.642.8399.

Thank you so much for your support!