Joliet Child Needs Brain Surgery

Madison had her first seizure, a grand mal, when she was 9 months old. Eventually she was diagnosed with multi focal complex partial and simple partial seizure disorders. She has absence seizures.

“She has some where she completely loses consciousness,” said Krystal Bettega, Madison’s mom. “And some where she doesn’t lose consciousness, but her body will make repetitive movements when they happen.”

In addition to the seizures, Madison is also non-vocal and severely myopic.

Bettega said she’s had Madison to every possible specialist she could think of. She’s even been to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota.

“This poor kid’s been in and out of hospitals her whole life, basically,” she said.

Most recently, Madi went in for a 48 hour EEG and doctors ended up doing a brain MRI and found a large cyst in her brain.

“So now we’ve moved from all the other stuff we were doing to brain surgery to remove the cyst,” she said.

The surgery for Madison is very important. If she doesn’t get it, she’ll get hydrocephalus, or water on the brain.

“Death is one of them with that,” Bettega said.

The seizures are not related to the cyst in Madison’s brain. However, Bettega hopes that with surgery Madison might be able to speak.

“Where the cyst is, it affects her motor skills for her mouth, as well,” Bettega said. “She does try to talk, it just doesn’t come out right.”

Despite her condition, Madison is always smiling and a normal 7-year-old girl who likes to play with dolls and read books. Madison is a Joliet resident, but goes to school in Plainfield.

“She loves to give people hugs and high-fives,” Bettega said.

In order to help cover her medical bills and other expenses, Bettega’s family members set up a Go Fund Me account.

“Her whole life she’s always had medical bills but I’ve always been able to handle it because I’ve always been working,” she said. “But I’m going to have to take Family Medical Leave and have the recovery and everything at our house, so (the fundraiser) will hopefully offset that and her medical bills.”

The Family Medical Leave Act allows a person to take unpaid, job-protected leave to look after a family member with a serious health condition.

To help Madison with her surgery and medical bills, visit her Go Fund Me page.