With surgery in Mexico, Jasperite hopes to reclaim her active life while raising awareness of gaps in specialized care for a debilitating disease
For years, Alisen Charlten has tried to manage an illness that has steadily taken away the things that make her life in Jasper feel like her own.
The chronic pain, gastrointestinal symptoms and exhaustion associated with endometriosis have left the 44-year-old struggling to work, maintain her business and enjoy the outdoor pursuits that once defined her life.
Now, facing the prospect of years on a Canadian surgical waitlist, Charlten is preparing to travel to Mexico for specialized diagnostics and surgery. She is asking the community for help to make that treatment possible.
“I need surgery as soon as possible and I need your help to get there,” she wrote in a GoFundMe campaign launched to help cover the costs of her medical care.
The campaign is also an opportunity to draw attention to a condition that Charlten believes is poorly understood and inadequately treated, leaving patients to navigate complex medical systems while coping with significant pain and disability.
“So many women are being failed by our healthcare system right now,” she said.
A debilitating disease
Endometriosis occurs when tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside the uterus. It can cause chronic pain, inflammation, scarring and adhesions, and may affect organs beyond the reproductive system, including the bowel and bladder.
The disease affects approximately one in 10 women, according to the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC). Despite its prevalence, diagnosis and treatment can be delayed by years, in part because symptoms vary and can resemble those of other conditions. The SOGC identifies timely diagnosis and access to knowledgeable providers as important challenges in endometriosis care.
For Charlten, the effects have been profound.
She says she has spent more than a decade experiencing significant pain, with the past six years bringing particular challenges to her ability to work consistently. Some days, she can barely manage ordinary tasks.
In her GoFundMe appeal, she describes days when walking, showering or standing long enough to prepare a meal becomes difficult. On her worst days, she says, she is confined to bed, curled around a heating pad in the dark.
“Too many days spent in bed is wasting my life,” she wrote.
An MRI on Sept. 1, following an earlier ultrasound that identified an endometrioma on her left ovary, provided further evidence of what she had been experiencing. Charlten says the 3.5-centimetre growth causes persistent pain, while the imaging suggests other organs may also be affected.
She is concerned that without more specialized imaging and treatment, the full extent of the disease will remain unknown.
Charlten says she is on a waitlist to see a specialist in Canada that she estimates could mean approximately 18 months before a consultation, followed by as long as four years before surgery.
After years of worsening symptoms, she does not feel she can afford to wait.
“This surgery should be available in Canada,” she wrote. “But sadly the calibre of care and diagnostics that are needed to properly treat deep infiltrating endometriosis in a timely manner isn’t available in our country.”
Finding another path
Charlten has identified a team of physicians in Mexico, through Endo Global Group, that she hopes can provide the specialized imaging, assessments and excision surgery she needs.
Her plans took shape partly through conversations with Mexican women who have recently settled in Jasper. One woman in particular helped introduce Charlten to the group of surgeons she is preparing to see.
Charlten says that encouragement has been an important part of finding a way forward.
The trip, however, comes with a substantial price tag.
According to her fundraising appeal, surgery alone is expected to cost more than $28,000. Additional expenses include specialized MRI and ultrasound imaging, consultations and testing, medications, travel and approximately two weeks of recovery in Mexico.
She also faces mounting bills after years of interrupted employment. Since August, Charlten says, she has been able to work only five to 20 hours a week.
As the sole shareholder of a limited company, she says she cannot pay into employment insurance in the same way as an employee, leaving her without that financial safety net during periods when illness prevents her from working.
The financial strain has been compounded by the realities of Jasper’s post-wildfire recovery.
“I have no savings left and no other options, but to ask for your generosity,” she wrote.
Even after surgery, recovery will take time. Charlten estimates it could be three to six months before she returns to normal capacity, depending on the complexity of the procedure and what surgeons discover.
For someone whose work and recreation have long been tied to an active outdoor lifestyle, the prospect of regaining some of that independence offers a measure of hope.
She says endometriosis, alongside ankylosing spondylitis, another chronic condition, has already taken a toll on her photography career, trail running and enjoyment of the backcountry.
Her goal now is to reclaim as much of that life as possible.
Asking the community for help
Charlten acknowledges that asking for financial assistance publicly is not something that comes naturally to her. But she hopes sharing her experience will help others understand the realities of living with endometriosis and the challenges patients can face when seeking specialized treatment.
Her message to potential donors is that contributions of any size can make a difference.
“I’m asking anyone who has anything from $5 to $100 to spare to consider helping,” she wrote.
Readers can contribute through Charlten’s GoFundMe campaign.
For those who know Charlten personally, she has also offered to arrange direct e-transfers to an account established for her surgery fund, allowing contributions to go toward medical expenses without the platform’s processing fees.
She is mindful that many Jasper residents are dealing with their own financial pressures. Those who cannot contribute financially, she says, should not feel guilty.
“I know times are tough for all of us in Jasper,” she wrote. “If you can’t afford anything, relieve yourself of the guilt. … No one is keeping score here.”
Ultimately, Charlten hopes her story can do more than help fund her own treatment. She wants to see greater awareness of endometriosis and more timely access to appropriate care for people living with the disease.
For now, she is focused on getting to Mexico, undergoing surgery and finding a way back to the life she has spent years fighting to hold on to.
Bob Covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com
