COTA for Dany

Our Story

My name is Daniela Gomez (Dany), I am 8 years old. Since I was very little, I have suffered from constipation. At age 4, I started having severe stomach pains. I went to the emergency room, but they told me it was constipation and sent me home. At home, I cried and screamed in pain; it was so intense that I couldn’t walk. My mom took me back to the emergency room and insisted. They did blood tests, among others, and realized it was pancreatitis. I have had more than 17 hospital visits with severe cases of pancreatitis. I have had more than 14 stents placed in my pancreatic duct, which is now tired and scarred. It is damaged and has caused me chronic pain that has prevented me from having a normal life like any other girl my age. I miss a lot of school, I struggle to maintain my weight, sometimes I can’t play or run, and when I have pain, I can’t eat or sleep. I constantly suffer from nausea. I take nine medications daily. I now depend on digestive enzymes to help my pancreas. I’ve had bouts of severe pancreatitis where I’m given morphine and other controlled medications to manage my pain.

Thank God I’ve had a great team of doctors who have cared for me these past years and who have now referred me to the Pancreatic Care Center at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. I need a total pancreatectomy with islet autotransplantation (TPIAT). It’s a complicated surgery that will last 10-12 hours. The surgeons will remove my pancreas, gallbladder, and spleen. They will cut a portion of my small intestine and reconstruct it. The team will extract cells from the pancreatic islets and transplant them into my liver. If everything goes well, I could become dependent on little or no insulin, and as I have been until now, I will depend on digestive enzymes for life. I also have the possibility of developing diabetes.

My mom has had to stop working to be with me in the hospital, which has made our financial situation very difficult. We’ve traveled by car for up to 9 hours. My surgery is on August 18th, and we’ll be traveling again, but this time with faith, asking God that everything goes well. I’ll be in the hospital for a long time, so please keep me in your prayers.

The Children’s Organ Transplant Association (COTA) helps children and young adults who need a life-saving transplant by providing fundraising assistance and family support. COTA is the nation’s only fundraising organization solely dedicated to raising life-saving dollars in honor of transplant-needy children and young adults. 100% of each contribution made to COTA in honor of our patients helps meet transplant-related expenses. COTA’s services are free to our families, and gifts to COTA are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

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Mi nombre es Daniela Gomez, (dany), tengo 8 años, desde muy pequena sufro de constipacion, a los 4 años, comencé con fuerte dolores en mi estomago, fui a emergencias, pero me dijeron que ere constipacion y me regresaron, en casa lloraba y gritaba de dolor era tan agudo que no podia caminar, mama me llevo nuevamente a emergencias e insistio, me realizaron examenes de sangre entre otros  y se dieron cuenta que era pancreatitis, que solo da una vez  o dos en niños, yo he tenido mas de 17 visitas al hospital  con cuadros  severos de pancreatitis, llevo mas de 14 stents puestos en  el conducto de mi pancreas, el cual ya esta cansado con muchas cicatrices, esta danado y me ha causado dolor crónico que me ha impedido tener una vida normal como cualquier  niña de mi edad, falto mucho a clases, lucho por mantener mi peso, a veces no puedo jugar, correr, cuando yengo dolor no puedo comer, dormir, continuanente sufro de nauseas, tomo 9 medicamentos diarios ahora dependo de enzimas digestivas para ayudar a mi pancreas, he tenido cuadros de pancreatitis severa en los que me aplican morfina y otros medicamentos controlados para mitigar mi dolor.

Gracias a dios, he tenido un buen equipo de doctores que me han cuidado estos años y que ahora me han referido al Centro de Atencion  del Pancreas en Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, necesito una Pancreatactomia total con autotransplante de islotes (TPIAT), es una cirugía complicadaque durara de 10-12 horas, los Cirujanos me extirparan el pancreas, la vesicula biliar, el bazo, cortaran una parte del intestino delgado lo reconstruiran, el equipo extraera las celulas de los islotes pancreaticos y los tranplantaran en mi higado,si todo sale bien podria llegar a depender de poca o nada de insulina y como lo he hecho hasta ahora dependere de por vida de las enzimas digestivas, asi como tambien tendrr posibilidad de desarrollar diabetes.

Mi mami ha tenido que dejar de trabajar para estar conmigo en el hospital, esto ha causado que nuestra situacion economica sea muy dificil, hemos viajafo en auto hasta 9- horas, mi cirugía es en Agosto 18, y viajaremos nuevamente, pero esta vez con la fe, pidiendo a papa dios que todo salga bien, estare en el hospital un largo tiempo, tocando sus nobles corazones mantenme en sus oraciones.