In 2020, Bryan Mayorga found love online and relocated from Puerto Rico to a small town in Oklahoma to be with his now-wife. He was a bright, young student studying computer science, but was plagued by painful headaches.
One year after his whirlwind move, a sharp, severe pain struck the side of his head. Bryan visited the doctor, but his symptoms were written off as “allergies”. Still, the appointment resulted in $344 worth of debt. Three years later, the previously undiagnosed 2.3-centimeter tumor sitting on Bryan’s brainstem caused a serious brain bleed.
Surgeons worked diligently to remove the tumor, and Bryan spent five days recovering in the ICU. However, this was just the beginning of his healing journey. Left with stroke-like symptoms, including an inability to feel hot and cold, Bryan has spent the last eight months trying to rebuild his motor skills and cognitive functioning. Meeting with a physical therapist three times a week, Bryan has made stunning progress, even regaining the ability to walk.
Bryan spoke at length about these developments, and made note of something so many forget. Bryan and his wife now face tens of thousands of dollars in debt from his brain cancer treatment. He added that, without his wife’s insurance, his life-changing medications would run him around $30,000 a month.
As he was navigating these challenges, medical debt from Bryan’s past was impeding his ability to move forward. When reflecting on his debt relief, he remarked that Undue’s abolishment made “the healing process much easier.”
Though he is still bravely fighting cancer, one thing is clear. Medical debts are a painful distraction preventing patients from focusing on their health. Undue seeks to relieve folks of this burden. We continue to abolish as much medical debt as we can, knowing that it has a profound impact on people like Bryan.
