And wouldn’t you know it…5 days prior to my departure, CCSVI, the ‘Costa Rica option’, and Passport Medical have been mired with the
saddest possible outcome to the same frantic desperation with which I am

seeking endovascular therapy; Mahir Mostic, a pwMS whose case could not

have been all that different from mine, has died due to complications

from what is misinformatively being referred to as ‘The Liberation

Treatment’. It’s sad. And while details are emerging on where the

disjunct occurred, on what went wrong, at what level and why, I am sure,

sure as I’ve ever been of anything, Mr. Mostic’s death was not entirely

in vane.

Any that have been following my blogs may remember one titled ‘Balloon Party‘ where I expressed concerns over some of the same things that played
into this tragic story; follow-up care, getting better only to get

worse, and what my reaction would be. If faced with the same

circumstances, would my decision be any different? Would I book the next

flight I could back to Costa Rica and open discussions about stenting

my blockage?

I voiced a rather aggressive stance on that question… but much like many things in life, what’s written on paper and what occurs in practice
are often two very different things. While I would like to think that I

will hold fastidiously to what I had previously stated, the sad truth –

I have no idea. I have no idea how I would handle getting better only

to get worse.

Life and death… complete opposites. But what they have in common; they can both be cruel and unusually unfair. I have done my due
diligence. I have a doctor that has agreed to provide follow-up care. I

know there is a imaging facility in Montreal that is capable of doing a

Doppler/MRV/venogram, should I need it. I know Dr. Sandy McDonald in

Barrie is trying to as many people as he can. But if/when I experience

complications/restenosis, will I have the strength to avoid making the

same mistake?

I guess we’ll find out… I leave on Wednesday. Wish me luck… I will most certainly be doing my best to keep everyone up-to-date through
further blog posts as time allows.