NEED TO KNOW
Laura Storr, 35, was diagnosed with life-threatening pulmonary arterial hypertension shortly after moving to Saudi Arabia for work in 2020
She is in dire need of a lung transplant but is too sick to fly home on a commercial plane
Her family is hoping to raise £108,000 (about $144,000) for a medical evacuation
A British spin instructor with a debilitating heart and lung condition is stranded at a hospital in Saudi Arabia as her family raises money to medically evacuate her for a much-needed transplant.
“She was aiming to come home but she couldn’t fly commercially. She kept waiting until she was stable enough to do it, which never came about,” Emily Storr told Kennedy News and Media about her sister, Laura Storr, a fitness instructor who moved to Saudi Arabia to manage an exercise studio in October 2020.
Laura Storr’s family is raising money to evacuate her from a hospital in Saudi Arabia
Credit: Kennedy News & Media
Shortly after the move, Laura, now 35, was diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension. It’s a type of high blood pressure that impacts the right side of the heart and the arteries in the lungs, Mayo Clinic explains, adding that the progressive illness can be “life threatening.”
Medical treatment was covered through Laura’s work — but in the last three months, Laura’s condition deteriorated, and she was hospitalized.
“She’s just getting worse every single day and it’s just taking an absolute turn for the worst,” Emily said. “She’s now picked up this infection where it feels like her lungs are bruised and she’s really lacking in oxygen now.”
(From left) Laura Storr with her mom, Freda, and sister, Emily
Credit: Kennedy News & Media
Laura needs a lung transplant, and her parents, Freda, 62, and John, 73, flew to Saudi Arabia to be with their daughter in February.
“Mum messaged me and they heard explosions,” Emily said. “It was right near the hospital and the airport.” They are desperate to leave and get Laura the help she needs. It’s why the family is has set up a GoFundMe to medically evacuate their sister from the area, as her insurance won’t cover the cost.
“There’s just so much uncertainty, it’s been an absolute nightmare,” Emily said. “Now we’re at this point of needing to make £108,600 to just get them on a medivac and get them out.
Laura Storr (left), and Emily Storr
Credit: Kennedy News & Media
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In the meantime, Laura is “coughing up quite a lot of blood,” Emily said, sharing that doctors informed the family ” ‘We really need to get her back now before it actually is too late.’ “
“You’ve just got to be positive and just know they’ll come home,” Emily said, sharing they plan to “try everything you can until that happens.”
Read the original article on People
