Ben Wolfenden, awarded Leeds’ Entrepreneur of 2020 by Leeds Digital Festival, has broken the sad news that he has only three months to live.
Ben needs help for life-saving treatment in Geneva and is asking for help to fund it. His fundraising page explains that a hospital error has left him with no alternative but to have a second double lung transplant.
Ben has battled with Cystic Fibrosis all his life and after catching the flu in 2019 (despite having the flu jab every year) had an emergency double lung transplant when he was just moments from death. The operation itself was a success, but a miscalculation with medication only 5 weeks later proved to be catastrophic when his body started to reject his new lungs. His condition hasn’t improved.
Christmas may be too late for Ben to spend with his wife Daisy and their two children of 6 and 3 years, because his appeal for a second transplant was rejected in the UK. However, a pulmonary transplant expert in Switzerland has reviewed his files and sees no reason why the second transplant cannot go ahead.
Donations are being requested so that Ben can travel to Geneva and live there before and after the transplant. He and his family know that this is his last chance of life.
Just 24 hours after the GoFundMe page was published, £100,000 had been raised. The generosity and compassion being shown by complete strangers as well as family, friends and associates is amazing, but a further £75,000 is still needed.
Ben is currently bed bound and contemplating that his wife may be widowed in her 30s, whilst the plans they had made for their life with their children are in peril – all because a hospital made a terrible mistake.
“To keep costs down, my wife Daisy and our children will have to stay in the UK, but the expense is still out of our reach. I’m now relying on the kindness of friends and strangers to save my life, and give me years more with my family.
Winning the award last week, as well as the Digital Agency title for Wolfenden, was an unforgettable moment – to know that the wider digital community put me forward was very humbling. I’m now appealing back to that community to support me, the agency and my family in this critical final battle.”
Donations can be made to Ben’s fundraising campaign here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/ben-wolfendens-final-chance
Please help Ben to have a life with his family if you can.
