Not refundable medication is the only solution to save Bartek! We are fighting for his life! Please help!

Bartek requires urgent support! We are raising funds for the hopefully life-saving medication! We need ca. 300,000 Polish zlotys to start the treatment now! The entire one-year therapy cost exceeds one million Polish zlotys… Please don’t leave us! 

Bartek is in severe condition. Although it has already been two years since the accident, during which he fought against a cruel disease called graft versus host disease (GvHD), its symptoms are more acute than ever. The disease has attacked Bartek’s lungs, which resulted in a reduced lung function (by 80%!) that causes breathing difficulties and choking! Bartek is scared that one day he won’t be able to catch a breath and walk to the bathroom…

The doctors told us about a medication that might stop the disease and help my son recover. Unfortunately, the drug is not registered in Europe and is available only on request. We can't obtain a reimbursement. The monthly cost of treatment is ca. 100,000 Polish zlotys, and we need to collect the funds equal to at least three months of therapy to start it!  

That is why we have made a tough decision to ask you for support. Bartek cannot come to terms with his situation. He wants to live, be able to go back to school, and go out! But most importantly, he doesn’t want to fear death, which is hiding somewhere behind the corner. 

It all started in 2013. After Bartek developed an acute infection, the doctors ran some blood tests, and the results were poor. We were told that Bartek needed monthly check-ups, so we traveled to another city to see a doctor. In the subsequent years, the doctor still didn’t order any extra tests, although Bartek’s blood test results were still poor. 

We were only supposed to keep an eye on Bartek, so we did. His body adjusted to the disease, and he even got into sports! 

I, however, could not accept the poor test results and the fact that the doctors didn’t do anything about it. I asked one of them if we could do something to improve Bartek’s health, and there was a solution—a bone marrow biopsy available in Poznan, which was over 100 km away. 

The initial tests, which were made in the cancer clinic upset the doctor, and lead her to perform further, more complex examinations that revealed a terrible diagnosis - myelodysplastic syndromes! 

It was a bone marrow disorder where instead of developing normally, the blood cells die in the bone marrow or just after entering the bloodstream. 

If untreated, the disease causes acute myeloid leukemia (in which the bone marrow makes numerous abnormal blood cells) in all cases! 

I was so scared! If it wasn’t for my intervention, we would still drive to the check-ups until the results showed cancer! Only that would trigger a reaction from the doctors! 

But it would be too late… 

The doctors decided to perform a bone marrow transplant. They made every effort to keep cancer away. 

We found a 9/10 matched unrelated donor—a woman from Turkey. 

We felt hope and fear at the same time! 

In 2020, Bartek received an opportunity for a new, better life. Unfortunately, on the 44th day after the transplant, he developed the first symptoms of graft versus host disease (GvHD)! It has been exceptionally harsh—it has attacked his organs one by one! After developing sepsis, hepatitis, mucosal, and skin inflammation, his lungs have been affected!

Today, our biggest concern is Bartek’s skin, which resembles a shell. He developed a partial pulmonary calcification, and additionally, the stiff skin makes it hard to breathe… Although our wonderful doctors did their best to treat Bartek, we are hopeless… The new life-saving drug with proven effectiveness, registered in 44 countries worldwide, is unavailable in Europe and can only be imported on request…

We ask you for any donations from the bottom of our hearts. We won’t make it without you, and we won’t surrender! 

Bartek is only 16 and has a whole life in front of him! We must offer him hope and cannot let him give up and lose faith in recovery! 

The parents, Anna and Krzysztof, family