بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

In the name of Allah, the most Gracious, the most Merciful.

My name is Ola Saad-Dirani. My family and I are reaching out with heavy hearts and hopeful spirits, inshallah. In May of 2022, my husband, Rani was diagnosed with a low-grade sarcoma, a rare type of cancer. Rani has undergone multiple surgeries and as of this month (March 2025) he will have undergone 12 rounds of chemo infusions. The road ahead will involve extensive medical treatments, hospital stays, and unforeseen expenses that place a tremendous burden on our family. Rani has been working and his insurance covered a majority of the medical expenses however due to his health, he is no longer able to work, although he tries. I, as his wife, have become the primary provider, and care taker for Rani and our now three year old daughter, Madina. We’re asking for your support to help cover medical costs, travel expenses for treatments, and other necessities during this difficult time.

Background: 

When Rani was first diagnosed, our daughter, Madina, was 8 months old, Rani went into surgery on May 22 of 2022, and five hours later, he came out with 33 staples in his right calf. The surgery was a success, and Rani was cancer free for over a year. Little did we know, this would be the first surgery of many to come.

In November of 2023, The cancer came back, much more aggressive and this time, it was in Rani's lungs. His care team, at the time, did not know how to treat this type of cancer, because it was so rare. His care team was going back and forth between aggressive chemotherapy (AIM), or radiation. Because his care team was so uncertain, as a family we decided to get a second opinion.

In January of, 2024, we concluded that the University of Michigan would be the best fit for us, and they would provide the best course of treatment for my husband, Rani. Rani was put on a clinical trial, and the oncology team at the University of Michigan was hopeful, however after months of being on the clinical trial, the cancer continued to grow in his lungs, building up fluid. Rani's lungs were functioning at 20% and he needed to go to the hospital for a drainage procedure every other day. There was 4 liters of fluid in his lungs every time he would go in for the drainage procedure.

On July 19, 2024, Rani had another procedure done, and his care team placed a port for his chemo infusions. In August of 2024,  his care team performed yet another surgical procedure to insert an indwelling pleural catheter into Rani's chest to drain fluid from the pleural space, the area around the lungs, helping to relieve breathlessness and discomfort. We had an in-home nurse come to our home to support us in the drainage process every other day. A few months later, his care team thought it was best to perform yet another procedure that used medicine to adhere Rani’s lungs to his chest wall. It seals up the space between the outer lining of the lung and chest wall to prevent fluid or air from continually building up around the lungs. After this procedure, Rani did not need the pleural catheter anymore, and his lungs were no longer building up with fluid, Alhamdillah.

Also in July of 2024, Rani started chemo infusions. His treatment requires 24 hours of chemo infusions directly into the port, in his body. Rani was receiving infusions every 21 days. More recently, his care team decided they were comfortable with him getting his chemo infusions every 28 days, and the end date is yet to be determined. As stated above, Rani is no longer able to work due to his health, your support would help alleviate costs for his on going medical care. Please keep our family in your prayers.   

Respectfully,

Ola Saad-Dirani