Chronic Kidney Disease, right kidney faillure

To all kind hearted persons, this is a letter from our sister in Christ.

Dear friends,

My name is Ailyn Lauron Duma-o a mother of two, and I am a diagnosed Chronic Kidney Disease patient and one who also suffers from a Right Kidney Failure, therefore left with a single kidney which only works at 25% capacity. I am seeking to raise P250,000 to support my hospitalization’s down payment but would require at least P1,200,000 to cover the overall cost of my kidney transplant operation, including the said admission to the hospital.

I was not necessarily a stranger to the struggle of having a kidney disease. My first bout with a kidney problem started when I was 5 years old which subsequently put me through a successful operation. Since then, I have lived a normal life up to adulthood until I reached the age of 27 when I suddenly felt feverish and with an accompanying bloody urine.

Brushing aside the seriousness of the illness, I chose to self-medicate, particularly by consuming Paracetamol to ameliorate the condition. But instead of getting better, it eventually worsened which led to my confinement to the hospital which lasted for about 3 weeks. According to the doctor, I was in need of a kidney transplant which would cost somewhere between half to a full million pesos.

When I was discharged from the hospital, I insisted in self-medicating again, resorting to means which I believe at the time would help address my ailment. For some unknown reason but I believe to be God's common grace, I felt better again and something which I considered a normal life and lasted for another 5 years.

Striving for a good life, I chose to work in South Korea bearing the same profession I do while in the country—I was a singer in a band. But as life with night time gigs is rife with vices, I was exposed to consuming alcohol and a weekly work without a day of break from it. It was a toxic lifestyle basically which has its own accompanying toll—I, again, got sick while in South Korea which led to a diagnosis that I was suffering from multiple stones in my kidney.

Contrary to my earlier diagnosis from several years back, my kidneys were still functional and the only fault is that it was indeed full of stones, possibly influenced by drinking.

Found swelling and inflamed, the treatment involved the use of ultrasound where 80% of the stones were crushed that led to their eventual release from the body through urine. Routinely, I went through this treatment after every 6 months.

In 2013, I went back to the country after my contract in South Korea had expired. While still intent in pursuing my career abroad, I never managed to get back to South Korea again. My career as a singer literally ended there and then.

But it took another 5 years before another problem presented itself again. This time, I suffered from a serious case of high blood pressure which forced me into a hospital confinement and subsequently re-diagnosed again for having a late stage (stage 5) Chronic Kidney Disease. It is during this time where I truly understood the severity of my case when the doctor mentioned that my right kidney is no longer functioning and is thus only left with the left kidney, but the latter is no longer fully capable of the task at only 25% capacity.

According to the doctor, I only have two ways of addressing my health condition—to go for a regular dialysis which would imply paying a hefty sum every single time or to have a kidney transplant which, while itself be very expensive, will provide longer benefits.

Lacking the sufficient funds to consider the latter of two choices, I had only one option. But it took another two years before I got presented with yet another problem arising from the health issue I chose to neglect with the assumption that it will get better again if only I live a life that leans towards health. By July of 2018, I went through a medical checkup which saw my blood’s creatinine level at a staggering 1200 mg/dL (normal level is 0.5 to 1.1 mg/dL) —I was essentially being poisoned by it due to my own negligence which I regretted.

Right now, seriously considering for my welfare but humbly submitting to God's sovereignty, I decided to opt for a transplant. Initially, my older sibling volunteered to donate one of her kidneys. But due to her own delicate condition, the process was not at all feasible.

There was still hope that there would be anyone in the family who would be generous enough to be up to the task. But, for now, the main issue I am dealing with is the finance which leads back to the original premise of this letter.

As I am aware that the money I am in need of is not easy to give, I am accepting donation of whatever amount so long as it’s out of sincere generosity.

Sincerely,

Ailyn Lauron Duma-o

This are my pictures last 2018 when I was admitted.