Kyle Dobbins 

USA 

23 Years Old 

Optic Nerve Damage from Neurofibromatosis

Check out Kyle's video on Vimeo here

Medical History 

When Kyle was 2 years old he was diagnosed with Neurofibromatosis, a rare cancer which results in various growths in the body. It is most famously and incorrectly known as The Elephant Man's Disease. In Kyle's case neurofibromatosis presented itself as a tumor in his brain. He explains, 

"It was a grade 3 cancer, rapidly growing, grade 4 is the fastest, but mine was still growing pretty fast, it was an atrocytoma, it was a star shape in the beginning, but then it grew and all connected and wrapped around my brain."

After undergoing chemotherapy, the tumor thankfully went into remission. However Kyle still had some nerve damage. He explains the effects,  

"I had optic atrophy, my vision was around 2400. I have trouble with my peripheral vision, in my left eye I have no peripheral and only limited in my right eye. This also causes problems with nystagmus."

Treatments

5 umbilical cord blood stem cell transplants plus acupuncture and rehabilitation therapy. 

Treatment in China 

Kyle did not let his vision problems affect the way he lived. He is currently working as a massage therapist while also attending college. He also leads an active life outside of school and work, playing guitar and going snow boarding. It was on one of these snow boarding trips that he heard about stem cell treatments for optic nerve damage. After doing his research he decided that the trip to China was the proper next step for him. 

While in China, Kyle started to see some changes to his condition. He explains,  

"For example, say I am sitting at my computer with my huge font. I can actually sit back from the screen much farther than I could before. Or if I am running at the gym. Usually I have to get pretty close to read the time on the treadmill, but now I can sit back and run normally."

He offers up this advice to other people with similar conditions, 

"Blind people are taught that there is no hope. That they basically have to live their lives relying on other people. I don't feel that that is right, I feel we need to try."