New Program for Vascular Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome

Vascular Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome is the most devastating type of EDS. 

By Candice Monhollan, cmonhollan@ 21st-centurymedia.com

https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/r20150430/r20110914/abg.js// <![CDATA[
var abgp={el:document.getElementById('abgc'),ael:document.getElementById('abgs'),iel:document.getElementById('abgb'),hw:15,sw:75,hh:15,sh:15,himg:'https://tpc.googlesyndication.com'+'/pagead/images/adchoices/icon.png',simg:'https://tpc.googlesyndication.com/pagead/images/adchoices/en.png',alt:'AdChoices',t:'AdChoices',tw:53,t2:'',t2w:0,tbo:0,att:'adchoices',ff:'',halign:'right',fe:false,fnb:false,iba:false,uic:false,icd:undefined};window.abg && new window.abg(abgp['el'],abgp['ael'],abgp['iel'],abgp['hw'],abgp['sw'],abgp['hh'],abgp['sh'],abgp['himg'],abgp['simg'],abgp['alt'],abgp['t'],abgp['tw'],abgp['t2'],abgp['t2w'],abgp['tbo'],abgp['att'],abgp['halign'],abgp['ff'],abgp['fe'],abgp['fnb'],abgp['iba'],abgp['uic'],abgp['icd']);
// ]]>

deft_1

The DEFY Foundation, started by two students at West Chester University

It’s a disease so rare that only one out of every 250,000 people will be diagnosed with it.

But for West Chester University senior Emma Yasick, she is now that one — and one of seven members of her family to be diagnosed with the rare, incurable disease known as Vascular Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (VEDS).

“It’s frustrating to say the least,” she said. “It’s something I would never wish upon anybody to have to go through this.”

Yasick has already lost two of her uncles, her grandfather, her father and her brother — all passing away in their 40s, except her brother, whom she lost at just 25. Her 7-year-old cousin also has VEDS.

And in September 2014, Yasick was diagnosed.

“It’s hard to see what my family has gone through and know that there’s nothing we can do about it,” she said. “Especially for me, it’s just scary at this point. I’m living with this disease that I have no control over. I was told I can take Vitamin C supplements, but other than that, there’s nothing they can do for me.

“There’s no treatment and nothing that’s going to prevent the end result from happening. That’s really just terrifying. It’s all the more motivation to try to get something in place,” Yasick said.

Along with the help of her significant other, Justin Borreggine, they started the DEFY Foundation — Defeating EDS For the Yasicks — during their senior years at West Chester University.

The purpose of DEFY is to raise awareness and money for research into VEDS specifically, as there are multiple types of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome.

Vascular is Type IV and is considered the most serious form of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome.

According to the Ehlers-Danlos National Foundation, Ehlers-Danlos is a genetic defect in the connective tissue, which is the tissue that provides support to your skin, muscles and ligaments.

With VEDS, there is the possibility of an arterial or organ rupture, along with bruising, slow wound healing, muscle tears and joints prone to dislocation.

“Each organization has its face,” Borreggine said. “Breast cancer is very prevalent in the country, so a lot of people are going to help that. For a disease that affects one of every 250,000, where do you get a face from that? There is such a love for (the Yasick) family. That’s our face. We can only hope to expand it from there.”

DEFY has quickly grown since its inception in October. Any plans to keep it a small, grassroots organization quickly went out the window once word spread.

“People are donating from all the states,” Borreggine said. “There is no official membership, but there is a Facebook page with 660 likes. To us, that’s impressive.”

The GoFundMe page has also seen a bump, with 58 people donating over $7,000 in the last five months.

“It’s nothing short of humbling,” Yasick said. “It just blows me away how generous people are, how supportive people are and how much people care about my family. It’s crazy for me to talk about the impact that we’ve been able to have.”

This new Defy Foundation Vascular EDS Program will be a great asset to the Ehlers-Danlos Community.

Click here to read more about this program

We appreciate your Likes and Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Get Webinar Announcements And Our FREE Guide

Support EDS Awareness

See all upcoming events

Current Poll

How long until you received a proper diagnosis for EDS?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...