Over the past several months Melissa has been experiencing symptoms of progressive neck and upper extremity pain with weakness. Evaluation has revealed that she has a Chiari malformation with a large cervical syrinx. Fortunately, this is a treatable condition. Unfortunately, the treatment is a complex neurosurgical procedure that involves removal of part of the base of the skull and the first cervical vertebrae, as well as removing a portion of the covering of the brain and spinal cord and sewing a larger patch in its place. Her recovery time is uncertain but will be a minimum of 6 weeks. Please consider donating to help offset her expenses and loss of income during her recovery.