Friends of a Muskegon family are actively raising money after their daughter was diagnosed with an extremely rare illness.
13-year-old Kaydence Bryant has Degos Disease, which most people probably haven't heard of. That's because it only effects 1 in roughly 39 million people and is hard to identify at first.
“Kaydence went to school, and everything seemed fine, she came home, and told me, 'Mom, my stomach hurts,'" Gina Wise, Kaydence's mother told WGVU. "We figured it was something she may have ate at school, or it was just a bug.”
“But within the hour, she started to throw up and get really sick.”
Wise says, that “stomachache” turned into a trip to the hospital, then into a surgery, then another, then two more.
A week later, doctors had determined Kaydence had Degos Disease.
“This would be hard for an adult to handle, let alone a 13-year-old girl,” Wise said. “Imagine just waking up, thinking you were going into a surgery for what they had originally thought was a ruptured appendix. Instead, it's a week later, you've had four surgeries done, and told you have an incurable disease.”
According to the National Institute of Health, Degos is an extremely rare illness that attacks a person's blood vessels, resulting in spots or lesions that appear on the skin. That in turn, can lead to a host of life-threatening complications over time, including stroke.
Wise says, that while health insurance is covering the hospital costs, the bills are beginning to pile up at home.
As Kaydence laid in a hospital bed for weeks, Wise had to take time off of work, and she and her husband had to navigate the daunting process of taking care of their 1-year-old baby back home in Muskegon while traveling back and forth to Helen DeVos Children's Hospital in Grand Rapids.
During an interview with WGVU, Wise was quick to point out, this is not about the financial burden of Kaydence's diagnosis.
“It is not so much about raising money for us, it is more about raising awareness about this disease,” Wise said.
Still, a family friend has set up a Go Fund Me page to help alleviate the costs of travel and expenses.
Meanwhile, the family says they are planning a benefit for Kaydence Sunday, July 23rd from 1-5 PM at Potawatomi Park, located at 15600 Comstock St. in Grand Haven.
The family is hoping Kaydence will be well enough and discharged from the hospital by then to attend.
For those who feel compelled to contribute, below is the link to the family's Go Fund Me page.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/knnqex-medical-expenses-for-13-year-old-child
