Help Save Elke

Elke urgently needs treatment for Lymes disease which is not covered by Medicare.

Almost two years ago, a few months after her 24th birthday, Elke became stricken with a mysterious illness within 24 – 72 hours after arriving in Bali Indonesia, where she was staying in a rural village on a surf trip. As a result, her life has been turned upside down. What started off as an off-season flu-malaise, and developed into continuous persistent debilitating migrainous-like headaches, has deteriorated into a chronic state of ill-health. As the months rolled by and doctors struggled to find a cause, Elke declined further; to the extent that, for the past 14 months she has been unable to work, drive or continue study for her Masters degree. Surfing became no longer an option.

Today Elke finds it hard to walk, talks with a slur, and struggles to read, write and take-in information. Without warning she faints, turns grey and loses consciousness, sometimes in a convulsing seizure. Meanwhile, she is often bed-ridden because of the extreme pain of her neurological symptoms, facial palsy (facial muscle paralysis, i.e. droopy face), tremendous aches and pains throughout the body and chronic fatigue. The complete list of her symptoms and the story of what she has endured is extensive and frightening. After 22 months of inexplicable serious illnesses, excruciating pain and investigations involving: 14 specialists, 3 admissions to hospital, 2 surgeries and invasive tests, countless MRIs, CTs, Ultrasounds, and blood-tests, Elke was recently diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease, and additional potentially fatal co-infections Bartonella and Babesia. One of these co-infections has a fatality rate of up to 90% and another up to 42%, respectively. Risks are at the high-end of the scale for Elke, whose immune system is severely impaired, as chronic Lyme disease destroys the immune system, such that a common flu or infection could be fatal.

What’s more, as you may have recently seen on ‘Today Tonight’ and ‘A Current Affair’, there is major political controversy within the Australian medical profession about whether Lyme disease and Lyme-like illnesses (co-infections) exist in Australia. Despite rapidly increasing numbers of people being diagnosed each year, the prevailing viewpoint is that ‘there is no evidence of Lyme disease in Australia … it just does not happen here’. As a result, Medicare does not cover treatment of Lyme disease and co-infections. In Elke’s case, her treatment will cost in-excess-of $70 000, regardless that she is an Australian citizen and tax-payer. Due to this controversy there is also little-to-no awareness in the Australian medical community about Lyme disease and co-infections, and because of this lack of knowledge by Australian physicians at-large, the diagnostic testing methods and treatment available in Australia is sub-par. Consequently, patients like Elke, suffer from limited access to much needed medical care, and are forced to look overseas for treatment options. They have to source, organise and finance the treatment themselves.

Chronic Lyme disease is a horrible, debilitating and degenerative disease. Like many chronic immune disorders, due to its complexities, is difficult, and often impossible to cure. These are compounded when there are co-infections involved – the presence of co-infections adds an additional layer of severity and complexity to the disease. However, with appropriate treatment there can be remission of active disease, whereby the patient is symptom and pain-free. There are hospitals in Germany that specialise in the treatment of chronic Lyme disease and co-infections, where people from all over the world go for treatment. This is where Elke will be receiving treatment once she can raise the money to begin – we are urgently trying to raise money for this appropriate specialised treatment that is unavailable in Australia. The treatment needs to be continuous, hence the funds are needed prior to starting, for assurance that there’s enough to follow through to the end. Elke cannot wait any longer, she is already well into the chronic phase of Lyme disease and co-infections, and it has become very apparent that Elke is deteriorating fast. So time is of the essence: the sooner Elke can raise the money, the sooner she can start treatment, and the better chance she has of survival.

Please help save our beautiful Elke. If you are able to help, we will be eternally grateful.

For more information on: Elke’s story, her life before becoming unwell, chronic Lyme disease and co-infections, the political controversies in Australia surrounding Lyme and Lyme-like illnesses (co-infections), the unreliable and inefficient diagnostic testing methods in Australia, as well as the appropriate treatment available in Germany, please see    www.helpsaveelke.com

Update 2015-01-03

Elke before becoming unwell

Some of the physical effects of chronic Lyme disease and her specific co-infections

Elke, all smiles

Elke is often in hospital because of this is a horrible, debilitating and degenerative disease.