Our Mission

Cure Achalasia Now began with one family’s experience. We are Gavin, Collin, and Evan Donaldson, and our journey is deeply personal because our father has lived with achalasia for as long as we can remember. His symptoms began while he was serving in the Navy in the early 2000s. After years of uncertainty, he was finally diagnosed in 2006 and underwent treatment, including Botox injections and a Heller myotomy. For a time, those procedures brought meaningful relief, though the challenges of achalasia never fully disappeared. In late 2024, our father’s condition returned in a severe and life-threatening way. Over the course of three hospital stays, much of that time in the ICU, he endured multiple treatments that ultimately led to an esophagectomy. Most of his esophagus was removed, and his digestive system had to be rebuilt. Recovery was long and difficult. He relied on a feeding tube, spent time away from work, and faced the physical toll of major surgery and malnourishment. Even now, his life is permanently changed by what he can eat, how often he can eat, and how he must manage each day. Watching our dad fight through repeated medical emergencies made one thing clear: we had to do something. We wanted to raise awareness of achalasia, support better treatment options, and help move research closer to a cure. Our parents have always been very active in the community, so having grown up around nonprofit work in the Pittsburgh area, we knew that the most meaningful way to respond was to build something of our own. That is why we founded Cure Achalasia Now (C.A.N.)—to turn personal hardship into hope for others. We cannot change what our father has endured, but we can work to create a better future for others living with this little-known disease. With the support of our community, we believe we C.A.N. advance research, improve treatments, and help ensure that fewer families have to face the same journey alone.

Our story is not just about what achalasia has taken from our father—it is about what no family should have to endure alone. We have watched him face years of uncertainty, painful procedures, and life-changing surgery, and that is why Cure Achalasia Now exists. Your gift C.A.N. help turn heartbreak into hope, fund research that C.A.N. lead to better treatments, and bring us closer to the day when families like ours no longer have to live in fear of what comes next. You C.A.N. make a difference. You C.A.N. give hope. You C.A.N. help find a cure. Donate Now