The doctors gave me 15 years to live - deep brain stimulation would delay my sentence!

When I heard the diagnosis, I was shocked. The name of the disease sounded new to me. Only after some research, I realized how serious it was. I knew I had to slow down its progress! To do it for my wife and kids…

It was my mother-in-law who encouraged me to go to the doctor. She noticed that I stumbled a lot, had an unsteady gait, and spoke too slowly. I, however, didn’t pay attention to these symptoms at all. I thought it all was a part of my nature. After all, everyone is different, right?

The test results let me down. Huntington’s disease is a genetic disorder. I might have inherited it from my father, who had never been diagnosed. I’m also afraid I could have passed it on to my children.

Currently, an effective treatment method hasn’t been invented yet. My disease is in progress. The medications I’m taking will stop working in the future. It’s inevitable. Our struggle has only one goal - to stop the disease. I’ve heard about two surgeries performed in Poland that involved a false gene replacement. We still don’t know if they were effective, though.

The only solution left for me is deep brain stimulation (DBS), a surgical procedure to implant electrodes in the brain to treat disorders associated with brain degeneration, such as involuntary limb movements or speech impairment (occurring in the first stage). In the final stage of the disease, I will require a wheelchair. However, the DBS allows postponing that moment.

Please, donate. I want to stay fit and active as long as possible.

Peter