Please Help Fight Chordoma

Source: www.webpathology.com

Chordoma is not a person, a  cause,  a party nor a state.  It is a rare slow-growing abnormal mass of tissue -- a tumor that can arise in the bone of the skull  or anywhere along the spine.

This condition requires high doses of controlled radiation.   The location of a chordoma is critical. Its proximity to   vital structures such as the brain stem and nerves  puts limitation on the radiation dose that can be delivered  on the abnormal tissue mass.    In this case, proton therapy and carbon ion therapy are used over regular x-ray radiation.

A fellow crusader against chordoma is my friend and work colleague-- Manny Rigo.   He is 38 years old,  on track on  a promising  career,  married with 3 children aged 8, 6 and 2.  Last year, he was diagnosed with this rare type of brain tumor. 

Manny  had undergone  surgery   to remove part of the  tumor but  at the beginning of this year,  test showed that an advancement in mass growth.

Doctors that Manny consulted here in the Philippines and  in the United States recommend proton therapy -- which is not available locallly-- to remove the tumor.   Loma Linda University Medical Center in California--  the  pioneer in proton therapy--  offered to take on Manny's case.

The cost of  proton therapy is prohibitive--  Manny  needs  US$130,000.00 USD or PhP 5.3 million.

  

Manny's cause is posted in  a website by a US-based non-profit organization named Community Charity Connection. 

Please click on this  link to read Manny's write-up.  Share the link with friends whom you believe can help. Or for those in the US, please consider making a contribution.  Any amount  received will be issued a 100% tax deduction receipt.

And please remember to say a prayer for Manny's recovery and for his family's fortitude through all these trying moments.