Please help Maksim for his facial nerve surgery.

$12,500 of $22,000 goal

Given by 227 generous donors in around 7 months

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We desperately need your assistance to help my son Maksim get his facial nerve surgery to alleviate face palsy.

Wellington

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Dear friends,

We desperately need your assistance to help my son Maksim get his facial nerve surgery to alleviate face palsy. Maxim's condition of facial nerve has deteriorated following the brain surgery he underwent in Munich in September of 2017. Since his malignant tumour was located very deeply inside the brain, the complication from the surgery resulted in the weakening of his facial nerve. We were advised to wait 6-9 months in hopes of spontaneous resolution of facial palsy, which, sadly didn't occur. Instead, his facial palsy increased. Maxim can't close his eye at all. It stays open 24/7, so we need to put eye drops in every hour or else it will dry out. Every speck of dirt can cause an infection. The left side of his face can't move at all. Maxim can not chew, smile, or even talk without considerable effort.

We greatly appreciate all that the neurosurgeon from Munich has done for Maksim. He did the unthinkable - he removed all of the brain tumour.. So, certainly, facial palsy is a small "price" to pay for full resection of tumour. Unfortunately, we can never feel safe since the histology if the tumour showed that it was extremely aggressive and unusual in nature. It was grade IV, so we are doing everything we can now to stop it from growing again.

Currently, Maksim feels extremely depressed and hopeless. We can help him, but we should do it before 9- 12 months pass since the brain surgery and the facial nerve undergoes complete atrophy, making his palsy irreversible. We were advised to get in touch with Professor Dr. Steffen Eisenhardt from Erich-Lexer-Klinik in Freiburg, Germany. He is a leading specialist in nerve palsy and has done numerous successful facial nerve surgeries. Maksim's trifacial nerve had been cut in order to stop the horrible pain Maksim was feeling after his first surgery in New Zealand. His case is very complicated, and despite trying to find the best surgery options here in New Zealand, we simply can't trust any local surgeons. We have already had so many complications caused by their lack of expertise that we are simply afraid to trust them with this complex issue in fears they will make it worse again, not better.

We are extremely grateful for all your help. We are on this journey only with your help and appreciate your kindness and care beyond any words.

Use of funds

Funds used for Facial nerve surgery

Latest update

hello Everyone 19 June 2018

Hello everyone

As you know, we have changed the date of the facial surgery until the September – October timeframe. The reason was that we were given some consultation with a local plastic surgeon on 14th June and we had very much hoped, actually, that we could stay for this difficult operation in Local private. During the appointment time, we asked him whether he does similar facial nerve operations that have been offered to us by the professor based in Freiburg, Germany. The answer was not often but he can try! He certainly does do facial nerve operations, but not often as he honestly admitted. But Maxim's case, My God, again Maxim's case is absolutely rare!!! So we left that appointment completely upset.

A Professor from Freiburg has been recommended to us by our Professor Meyer, the neurosurgeon who completely removed Maxim’s tumor last year when here in New Zealand we were been told that the chances after the second operation were down to 15% chance of success. In Germany, it was all removed, but unfortunately, a side-effect of that operation was paralysis of a facial nerve on the left side. Maxim suffers terribly.

We decided to follow our plan to go to Freiburg for this composite surgery.

We are very thankful and appreciated to all of you who are helping us with this

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