A mother of three is fighting not one, but two rare diseases that are causing her to lose her vision.
A specialist has recommended an experimental treatment, but the family needs help for that to happen.
Dreelynn Choi Foo, 35, has about five percent of her vision left, but that hasn’t stopped from doing what she loves to do the most: taking care of her family.
In 2001, just out of high school, Choi Foo was diagnosed with Acute Zonal Occult Outer Retinopathy (AZOOR), which caused her to lose her peripheral vision.
She was still able to do everyday tasks, except for driving, until four years ago, when she was diagnosed with another disease called Autoimmune Retinopathy.
Sitting just a few feet away, this is how she describes seeing me: “Just your eye, just one eye, so I kind of have to maneuver around you and look to see your whole face.”
With three children and her husband working full-time, she’s still able take care of the family.
“I can clean. I still cook. That’s been a struggle too sometimes, but I have my kids to help me, so sometimes I’ll ask them, ‘Does this look cooked?’” she said.
Choi Foo has no time to feel sorry for herself, but there’s the thought of not being able to take care of her family anymore.
“I might in fact go blind or lose all of my vision, and my kids are still young,” she said.
A specialist in Oregon wants her to try an experimental treatment that could help, which requires several transfusions, each one costing several thousand dollars, but her medical insurance won’t pay for it, so she’s filed an appeal.
In the meantime, friends and family have organized a fishing tournament next month to help raise money for her medical costs.
As for the treatment, the best she can hope for is to stop her vision from getting worse. At this point, she says, it’s worth a shot to be able to see her children grow up.
For details on the fundraiser and to donate, visit www.tightlines808.com.
