Chapter 1: A Life-Altering Hospital Stay

Just a year ago, my family and I welcomed my dad back home after an intense 54-day stay in the hospital. He had endured a grueling battle against a lung and brain infection, which necessitated surgery to determine whether he was facing cancer, amyloid, or merely an infection. The medical team was uncertain about his chances of surviving the operation due to his deteriorating health, worsened by a powerful chemotherapy regimen intended to manage his amyloid levels for a potential kidney transplant. Although he had previously been declared in remission, the requirement for a new kidney was strict: they needed to confirm that his bone marrow wasn’t producing amyloid that could attack a transplanted organ.

Dad was diagnosed with AL-Amyloidosis, a rare condition that few people understand. Just as his health numbers became favorable for the transplant process, a troubling anomaly appeared in his lung, disqualifying him for the procedure. This revelation devastated him. His condition continued to decline, marked by a lack of appetite, extreme fatigue, persistent coughing, and an overall disinterest in life. Medical professionals attributed his symptoms to the "Winter Blues." Soon, he lost the ability to walk.

The situation escalated when we could no longer transport him to dialysis appointments. Eventually, he developed a fever and became confused, leading to an ambulance trip to a larger hospital. During this ride, he inexplicably lost the use of his right arm and began tremoring uncontrollably.

Despite prior biopsies indicating possible amyloid presence in his lung, the hospital physicians were skeptical. They performed another biopsy from living tissue surrounding the previously sampled dead tissue and discovered an infection caused by a strain of STREP that typically originates from oral and sinus cavities.

As they planned further examinations for his cognitive issues and movement difficulties, attempts to conduct brain scans were hampered by his tremors. Although they identified lesion