Adam's Prayer 
Adam's Prayer
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Thanks for visiting this site... My name is Adam, and I am a husband and father of four who happens to be legally blind. At the age of seven I was diagnosed with optic nerve atrophy, and my current corrected vision is 20/400 (this is with my glasses on). This means that what a person with 20/20 vision can see from 400 feet I can see if I stand 20 feet away, but even then what I see is always blurry. This is by no means scientific, but I tried to convey this with the two pictures above. The shot on the left is how someone with 20/20 vision would see our family, but the picture on the right reflects how someone with my vision would see us. I have always been told there was nothing that could be done to improve my vision, and that was the case... until now. In March of this year I was exploring recent developments related to stem cell research. For many years I had been told that any developments in treating my condition would come out of the stem cell studies. While doing my research I came across a website for a company in China (www.stemcellschina.com) who is offering stem cell therapy and has been since 2001. They only use stem cells derived from donated umbilical cord blood. One of the patients of this company is a Colorado girl named Macie (link to her story). She has a condition called optic nerve hypoplasia; this is similar to optic nerve atrophy because it affects the development of the optic nerve. After undergoing stem cell therapy in China, Macie has seen enough improvement in her vision that she is now driving. So, with greatly increased interest in what I had recently thought impossible, I filled out the questionnaire on www.stemcellschina.com and was accepted to receive treatment. Now I am creating this website with dreams of traveling to China to get the experimental procedure done myself, in hopes that I see even part of the improvement that Macie has seen.
Before I can go on this life-changing journey to China and undergo the stem cell therapy, I must raise the funds for the trip. I am hoping the generosity of family, friends, and strangers will make it possible for me to see my children grow. Please check out The Family to see 5 reasons I wish to gain my sight. |
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| Note from Adam | |
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If you have questions or comments, contact us at adam@adamsprayer.com
Thanks to your generosity we have raised:
I do have additional interests in
the stem cell therapy beyond improving my own vision. My brother is living with optic nerve atrophy as well, and earlier this
year our little girl, Cora, was also diagnosed with it. At this point her
case is very mild, but her doctor did say she has a 50% chance that it will get
worse,
and we simply have to wait and see. Besides the potential benefit to my
own vision, I would like to help bring awareness to the procedure so others can
experience the effects.