Mariela Chavez

Help Mariela Get Her Liver Transplant!

Mariela Chavez, a single mother of five, is in need of a liver transplant and needs the help of her community to make it happen. The transplant is lifesaving but very expensive.

Mariela was diagnosed eight years ago with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) of the liver. This is a chronic, or long-term, disease of the liver that slowly destroys the medium-sized bile ducts within the liver. Bile is a digestive liquid that is made in the liver. It travels through the bile ducts to the small intestine, where it breaks down fat into fatty acids. In patients with PBC, the bile ducts are destroyed by inflammation. This causes bile to remain in the liver, where gradual injury damages liver cells and causes cirrhosis or scarring of the liver. As cirrhosis progresses and the amount of scar tissue in the liver increases, the liver loses its ability to function and prevents blood from the intestines from returning to the heart.

Mariela’s everyday battle is fighting fatigue, trying to focus, and still being able to work. Because she is a single mother and is the only source of income to support her children, she cannot manage to stop working as doctors have recommended. Currently she is taking different medications that help with the symptoms of PBC but are in no way a cure. Mariela is finding it more difficult each day to maintain a normal life and to focus on everyday tasks. The only hope for a cure is a liver transplant. Thankfully, Mariela is on a waiting list for transplantation.

Transplants are lifesaving but financially draining. Even with insurance, Mariela is facing very high expenses she will have to pay for out-of-pocket including travel to and from the center, co-pays, anti-rejection medications she will have to take for the rest of her life, and more. It is adding up to more than she can handle alone.

To help with the financial burden of Mariela Chavez’s uninsured expenses, a fundraising campaign in her honor has been established with HelpHOPELive, a trusted nonprofit organization that has been providing community-based fundraising guidance to patients and their families for more than 30 years. All donations are tax-deductible, are held by HelpHOPELive in the South-Atlantic Liver Transplant Fund Transplant Fund, and are administered by HelpHOPELive for transplant-related expenses only. Please consider a donation.

For credit card contributions, please click the yellow Donate Now button.

Your support is critical to the overall success of Mariela’s struggle. Please know that your contribution counts. Thank you in advance for your prayers, support and generosity.

With sincere gratitude,

Reina Espinosa (Mariela’s sister)
571-447-1172