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Ed Yeates ReportingOne half of a Utah man's brain is shrinking away, and neurologists don't know why. The mystery has puzzled specialists in Canada and the United States, some who've been following his case for the past 15 years.
50-year old David Mitchell may look okay, but inside, the left side of his brain is shrinking while the right side remains normal.
David Mitchell: "It's like a part of me is not there anymore."
Dr. Patrice Duvernay says his case has even been presented at medical conferences..
Patrice Duvernay, M.D., LDS Hospital Neurologist: "They were very puzzled, had difficulty generating a list of diagnoses.”
Cynthia Mitchell, David's Wife: "It's been a very unusual situation and the doctors at the Mayo, when we went back in March, said it was an anomaly. He was an anomaly."
David will be going back to the Mayo Clinic later this month while some of the country's top experts take biopsies and run more tests. Alzheimer's, Crutzfelt Jacob's Disease, other recognized brain disorders - so far they've all been ruled out.
Patrice Duvernay, M.D.: "The disease is going forward or anterior where it's affecting memory, language and personality - making it so he is no longer able to work."
David Mitchell: "Headaches. I have headaches all the time and no matter what I take, it doesn't do anything to make them go away."
Today at Salt Lake's Olympic Cauldron Plaza there was a fundraiser to help the Mitchell's, now uninsured, pay for some of their staggering medical bills.
David's hope?
David Mitchell: "Even if they can't restore the things that have gone away, at least if we could stop it from continuing."
It's possible David's condition may have been triggered by a viral infection. But that too is an unknown right now.
You can make donations to the David Mitchell Medical Fund at any ZIONS Bank.
