Welcome To Million To One

nick-1

Welcome to Millionto1.org. This page was established to help our dear friend Nick, who for the last 10 months has been fighting for his life.

Despite being a healthy 30-something just a short time ago, Nick is now the only person in Australia suffering from Coccidioidomycosis Meningitis.

Nick’s wife and children are American citizens, and while the family was vacationing in Southern California Nick simply took a breath and inhaled a spore that lodged in his lung. Here in the U.S. this fungus is commonly called Valley Fever. Like many cases, Nick would not show signs of a problem for months, well after he returned home. When he eventually began to have symptoms the doctors in Australia were puzzled and his condition worsened while it went undiagnosed and misdiagnosed for several months. Without the proper treatment the condition quickly progressed into Coccidioidomycosis Meningitis, an often fatal infection.

Australian doctors are unfamiliar with this disease and as a result the medicine used to treat it is not standard, Nick’s health plan will not cover it.

In his greatest time of need, Nick has been abandoned by his insurance companies, has lost his business, and the family has lost their home. Fearing that Nick was running out of options, and time, his wife Allison sent a letter to all of her friends and family asking them to help her find a doctor, anywhere in the world, that can help Nick. In no time at all strangers were doing all they could to help his story reach the right people. The letter quickly spread and began to reach top medical specialists throughout the U.S. and by mid-week Allison was in touch with doctors that may be able to save Nick.

It has been decided by both American and Australian doctors that Nick really needs to come to the U.S. to receive the treatment he desperately needs. There are world specialists in Stanford, San Jose, and Arizona that are willing to help Nick, but the financial burden without insurance is colossal.

We were so inspired by the number of people that reached out to help Nick that we created this website as a way to share his story and to assist the family financially. If every person gifts even a small amount we will be able to help the family pay for the treatment Nick so desperately needs.

Nick is an amazing person, a wonderful husband, father and friend. We encourage you to share Nick’s story with your own family and friends so we can all join in the fight with him and his family. They need our support now more than ever.

-Nick’s friends

You can email Nick’s family directly here: helpnickduggan@gmail.com