Kit Roberts
A mom is trying to spread awareness about a horrific medical condition after two of her sons were diagnosed with it.
Azeza Kasham from Belleville, Michegan, spoke up about the rare health condition which tragically has affect her two sons.
The condition has been described by a doctor as 'one of the worst diseases that you could have', and is passed on genetically.
It's called Lafora disease, which Cleveland Clinic describes as causing 'seizures and cognitive decline'.
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This is an extremely rare form of epilepsy which affects about four people in a million.
Sadly, the condition is progressive, meaning that it gets worse over time and the symptoms become increasingly severe over a period of years or months.
Azeza's elder son Hiatham had previously been diagnosed with the condition back in 2017, and passed away two years later.
As if the pain of losing one child wasn't already awful, Hiatham's brother Gigi would then be diagnosed with the same condition just 10 days after his brother died.
Now, the boy's mom has opened up about the impact of the condition, and how it's now affecting her younger son.
"Ultimately, I'm going to lose him," she told FOX. "I want to feel like I did everything I could for him, and right now I don't feel that way."
Speaking about how it had affected Hiatham, she said: "Hiatham really wanted to make sure that this disease ended with him.
"It's nice to remember that they had happy days on this earth."
Now, the condition is starting to worsen for Gigi as well.
Azeza said: "I'm forced to watch him suffer like this, and I need help. This disease is taking him piece by piece."
Cleveland Clinic outlines some of the symptoms and the way that the disease progresses.
"Symptoms usually begin during adolescence and include jerking seizures, a loss of balance and difficulty speaking," the site explains.
"The symptoms get worse as clumps of stored energy build up in your child’s nervous system, muscles and tissue cells. Treatment helps keep your child comfortable."
Dr. Nancy McNamara is the division chief of Pediatric Neurology at Corewell Health, and described how serious Lafora disease is.
"I often think about this one being one of the worst diseases that you could have," she said.
Now, a GoFundMe page has been started to help support Gigi.
This includes providing for his medical and daily living expenses, a wheelchair-accessible van, making the family home more accessible, as well as supporting Azeza with bills so she can focus more on supporting her family.