Indiana

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Ashley Lee

Terre Haute, Indiana
College-age survivor of meningococcal disease

Ashley was a freshman at Indiana State University when she contracted a rare, but dangerous bacterial infection called meningococcal disease. Ashley survived; however spent several months of recovery time in the hospital and underwent amputations of both feet and some fingers as a result of the disease.

In September 2005, Ashley came home from college for the weekend. She had not been feeling well and thought some time at home would do her good. She passed her sickness off as a cold or the flu since many of her friends had recently been ill. However, the next day she had come down with a headache and felt weak. When her symptoms continued to progress, Ashley's father took her to a nearby hospital realizing she may have something more serious than the flu. Upon her arrival, Ashley's symptoms worsened, and a rash developed on her limbs and torso. The hospital was not able to identify the cause of Ashley's symptoms, so her father rushed her to a larger hospital. It was there that doctors finally diagnosed Ashley with meningococcal disease and prescribed antibiotics to fight the infection.

Ashley's memory of those first few days in the hospital is still vague, since she slipped in and out of consciousness as her body fought to survive. After a week of antibiotics, Ashley underwent amputations of her left foot and some fingers, which doctors indicated were necessary to save her life. She then spent several months recovering.

Ashley's battle did not end there. Two and a half years later, she was still struggling with the long-term effects of the disease, namely tissue damage on her right foot that was causing her a great deal of pain. Faced with the most difficult decision of her life, she decided to have her right foot amputated in May of 2008 in order to live a more active life. Today, Ashley is doing well. She is back in school pursuing a degree in biology, and has begun running again.

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